T.  H,  p.  SAILER, 
4046  SPRUCE  ST., 
PHILADELPHIA. 


tihvaxy  of  Che  t:heolo0(cd  ^mimvy 

PRINCETON  .  NEW  JERSEY 

FROM  THE  LIBRARY  OF 
ROBERT  ELLIOTT  SPEER 

BV  3271    .J7  J842  1894 
Judson,  Edward,  1844-1914. 
Adoniram  Judson 


T.  H.  p.  SAILER, 
4046  SPRUCE  ST., 
PHILADELPHIA. 


TO 

THE  CHILDREN  OF  MISSIONARIES, 

THE  INVOLUNTARY  INHERITORS 
OF  THEIR  PARENTS'  SUFFERINGS  AND  REWARDS, 

THIS  BOOK  IS  AFFECTIONATELY  DEDICATED 

BY  ONE  OF  THEIR  NUMBER. 


PREFATORY  NOTE 


It  is  my  purpose  in  the  following  pages  to  present  a 
clear  and  consecutive  story  of  my  father's  life,  which  may 
be  justly  said  to  form  the  main  artery  of  the  American 
Foreign  Missionary  Enterprise,  In  order  to  do  this  I 
have  essentially  re-written  the  Memoir  which  I  prepared 
ten  years  ago  for  Anson  D.  F.  Randolph  &  Co.,  and 
have  endeavored  to  meet  the  requirements  of  the  younger 
generation  of  Christendom.  Free  use  has  also  been  made 
of  the  personal  reminiscences  contributed  by  the  fasci- 
nating pen  of  Mrs.  Emily  C.  Judson  to  Dr.  Wayland's 
noble  and  comprehensive  Memoir,  now  out  of  print. 
The  American  Baptist  ■Missionary  Union  possesses  a  very 
full  collection  of  journals  and  letters,  etc.,  which  have 
been  very  carefully  studied.  It  is  a  matter  for  sincere 
thanksgiving  that  these  were  spared  and  not  consumed 
in  the  recent  fire  at  Tremont  Temple,  as  was  understood 
by  me  when  this  book  was  first  published. 

E.  J. 

New  York,  1894. 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 

CHAPTER  I. 

Early  Years.    1788-1809,  9 

CHAPTEll  II. 
Consecration  to  Missionary  Life.    1809-1812,  .    .  22 

CHAPTER  III. 
Voyage  to  Bur.ma.    1812-1813,   •  29 

CHAPTER  IV. 
Burma  and  Buddhism,   40 

CHAPTER  V. 
Life  in  Rangoon.    1813-1819,  57 

CHAPTER  VI. 
Life  in  Rangoon  {Continued).    1819-1823,      ...  74 

CHAPTER  VII. 

Life  in  Ava  and  Ounq-pen-la.    1823-1826,  ...  89 

7 


8  CONTENTS 


PAGE 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
Life  in  Amherst.    1826-1827,   101 

CHAPTEU  IX. 
Life  in  Moulmein.    1827-1831,   Ill 

CHAPTER  X. 
Lite  in  Moulmein  (^Continued).    1831-1845,     .    .  .130 

CHAPTER  XI. 
Visit  to  America.    1845-1846,   143 

CHAPTER  XII. 
Last  Years.    1846-1850,   158 

CHAPTER  XIll. 
Posthumous  Influence,  172 


ADONIRAM  JUDSOiN 


CHAPTER  I 

EARLY  YEARS.  1788-1809 

rriHE  traveler  who  visits  Maiden,  Massachusetts,  one 
Jl  of  the  picturesque  suburban  towns  of  Boston,  may 
find  iu  the  Baptist  meeting-house  a  marble  tablet,  bear- 
ing the  following  inscription  : 

IN  MExMORIAM. 
REV.  ADONIRAM  JUDSON. 
BORN  AUG.  9,  1788. 
BIED  APRIL  12,  1850. 
MALDEN,  HIS  BIRTHPLACE. 
THE  OCEAN,  HIS  SEPULCHRE. 
CONVERTED  BURMANS,  AND 
THE  BURMAN  BIBLE, 
HIS  MONUMENT. 
HIS  RECORD  IS  ON  HIGH. 

The  old  wooden  house  embosomed  among  the  trees  is 
still  pointed  out  as  the  birthplace  of  Adoniram  Judson. 
His  father,  also  named  Adoniram,  was  a  Congregational 
minister,  hovn  in  Woodbury,  Connecticut,  in  June,  1752. 
He  was  married  November  23,  1786,  to  Abigail  Brown, 
who  was  born  at  Tiverton,  Rhode  Island,  December  15, 

9 


10 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


1759.  Soon  after  his  marriage  he  settled  in  Maiden, 
Massachusetts,  and  here  his  eldest  son,  Adoniram,  was 
bom. 

The  boy  was  precocious  and  learned  to  read  when  he 
was  only  three  years  old.  While  his  father  was  absent 
on  a  journey,  his  mother  conceived  the  idea  of  teaching 
her  child,  in  order  that  she  might  give  her  husband  an 
agreeable  surprise  on  his  return.  She  succeeded  so  well 
that  when  his  father  came  home  he  saluted  him  by  read- 
ing a  whole  chapter  in  the  Bible. 

His  affection  for  his  father  must  have  been  deeply 
tinged  with  awe ;  for  the  elder  Adoniram  was  a  stern 
man,  and  very  strict  in  his  domestic  administration.  He 
was  a  man  of  decidedly  imposing  appearance,  his 
stature  being  rather  above  the  average.  His  white  hair, 
erect  position,  grave  utterance,  and  somewhat  taciturn 
manner,  together  with  the  position  he  naturally  took 
in  society,  left  one  somewhat  at  a  loss  whether  to  class 
him  with  a  patriarch  of  the  Hebrews  or  a  censor  of 
the  Romans.  He  was  through  life  esteemed  a  man  of 
inflexible  integrity  and  uniform  consistency  of  Christian 
character.  To  the  influence  of  such  a  father  perhaps 
were  due  the  stately  courtesy  that  characterized  Mr.  Jud- 
son's  social  intercourse  throughout  his  whole  life,  and  the 
dignity  of  style  which  pervaded  even  his  most  familiar 
letters. 

The  family  lived  in  Maiden  until  Adoniram  was  about 
four-and-a-half  years  old.  During  that  time  his  sister, 
Abigail  Brown  Judson,  was  born,  to  become  the  compan- 
ion of  his  childhood  and  his  life-long  confidante.  She 
recently  died  in  Plymouth,  Massachusetts,  at  the  age  of 
ninety-five.  She  remembered  hearing  her  parents  relate 
that  when  her  brother  was  only  four  years  old,  he  used 


EAELY  YF.ARH 


11 


to  gather  together  the  children  of  the  neighborhood  to 
play  church,  he  officiating  as  minister ;  and  that  even 
then  his  favorite  hymn  was  the  one  beginning,  "  Go 
preach  my  gospel,  saith  the  Lord." 

In  January,  1793,  the  family  removed  to  Wenham, 
Massachusetts,  a  village  about  twenty  miles  northeast  of 
Boston,  where  Adoniram  lived  until  he  was  twelve  years 
old.  Here  his  brother  Elnathan,  who  became  a  surgdon 
in  the  United  States  Navy,  was  born  May  28,  1794. 
Here  too,  when  Adoniram  was  eight  years  old,  his  sister 
Mary  was  born,  only  to  die  six  mouths  later.  This  first 
contact  with  death  must  have  marlted  an  epoch  in  his 
boyish  life. 

Adoniram  was  about  seven  years  old,  when,  having 
been  duly  instructed  that  the  earth  is  a  spherical  body 
and  that  it  revolves  around  the  sun,  it  became  a  serious 
question  in  his  mind  whether  or  not  the  sun  moved  at  all. 
He  might  have  settled  the  point  by  asking  his  father  or 
mother;  but  that  would  have  spoiled  all  his  pleasant 
speculations,  and  probably  would  have  been  the  very  last 
thing  to  occur  to  him.  His  little  sister,  whom  alone  he 
consulted,  said  the  sun  did  move,  for  she  could  see  it ; 
but  he  had  learned  already  in  this  matter  to  distrust  the 
evidence  of  his  senses,  and  he  talked  so  wisely  about 
positive  proof,  that  she  was  astonished  and  silenced. 
Soon  after  this  he  was  one  day  missed  about  midday  ;  and 
as  he  had  not  been  seen  for  several  hours,  his  father 
became  uneasy  and  went  in  search  of  him.  He  was 
found  in  a  field,  at  some  distance  from  the  house, 
stretched  on  his  back,  his  hat  with  a  circular  hole  cut  in 
the  crown  laid  over  his  face,  and  his  swollen  eyes  almost 
bUnded  with  the  intense  light  and  heat.  He  only  told 
bis  father  that  he  was  looking  at  the  sun ;  but  he  assured 


12 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


his  sister  that  he  had  solved  the  problem  with  regard  to 
the  sun's  moving,  though  she  never  could  comprehend 
the  process  by  which  he  arrived  at  the  result. 

He  was  noted  among  his  companions  for  uncommon 
acuteness  in  the  solution  of  charades  and  enigmas,  and 
retained  a  great  store  of  them  in  his  memory  for  the  pur- 
pose of  puzzling  his  schoolfellows.  On  one  occasion  he 
found  in  a  newspaper  an  enigma  rather  boastfully  set 
forth,  and  accompanied  by  a  challenge  for  a  solution. 
He  felt  very  sure  that  he  had  "  guessed  riddles  as  hard 
as  that,"  and  gave  himself  no  rest  until  he  had  discovered 
a  satisfactory  answer.  This  he  copied  out  in  as  fair  i 
hand  as  possible,  addressed  it  to  the  editor,  and  confiding 
in  no  one  but  his  sister,  conveyed  it  to  the  post-office. 
But  the  postmaster  supposed  it  to  be  some  mischievous 
prank  of  the  minister's  son,  and  he  accordingly  placed 
the  letter  in  the  hands  of  the  father.  The  poor  boy's 
surprise  and  discomfiture  may  be  imagined  when  he  saw 
it  paraded  on  the  table  after  tea. 

"  Is  that  yours,  Adouiram  ?  " 

"Yes,  sir." 

"  How  came  you  to  write  it  ?  " 
Silence. 

"What  is  it  about?" 

Falteringly,  "  Please  read  it,  father." 

"  I  do  not  read  other  people's  letters.  Break  the  seal 
and  read  it  yourself." 

Adoniram  broke  the  seal  and  mumbled  over  the  con- 
tents, then  placed  the  letter  in  his  father's  hands.  He 
read  it,  called  for  the  newspaper  which  had  suggested  it, 
and  after  reading  and  re-reading  both,  laid  them"  on  the 
table,  crossed  his  hands  on  his  knees,  and  looked  intently 
into  the  fire.     Meanwhile  Adoniram  stood  silently 


EARLY  YEARS 


13 


watching  his  countenance,  speculating  on  the  chances  of 
his  being  treated  as  a  culprit,  or  praised  for  his  acute- 
ness.  But  the  father  awoke  from  his  reverie,  the  subject 
of  conversation  was  changed,  and  the  letter  never  heard 
of  afterward.  The  next  morning  Adoniram's  father 
gravely  informed  him  that  he  had  purchased  for  his  use 
a  book  of  riddles,  a  very  common  one,  but  as  soon  as  he 
had  solved  all  that  it  contained,  he  should  have  more 
difficult  books. 

"  You  are  a  very  acute  boy,  Adoniram,"  he  added,  pat- 
ting him  on  the  head  with  unusual  affection  ;  "  and  I  ex- 
pect you  to  become  a  great  man." 

Adoniram  seized  upon  the  book  of  riddles  joyfully,  and 
was  a  good  deal  surprised  and  disappointed  to  find  it  the 
veritable  arithmetic  which  the  larger  boys  in  Master 
Dodge's  school  were  studying.  But  then  his  father  had 
praised  him,  and  if  there  was  anything  puzzling  in  the 
aritlinietic,  he  was  sure  he  should  like  it ;  and  so  he  pre- 
pared to  enter  upon  the  study  with  alacrity.  Before 
reaching  his  tenth  year,  he  had  gained  quite  a  reputation 
for  good  scholarship,  especially  in  arithmetic. 

A  gentleman  residing  in  the  neighboring  town  of 
Beverly  sent  him  a  problem,  with  the  offer  of  a  dollar 
for  the  solution.  Adoniram  immediately  shut  himself 
in  his  chamber.  The  reward  was  tempting ;  but  more 
important  still,  his  reputation  was  at  stake.  On  the 
morning  of  the  second  day  he  was  called  from  his  seclu- 
sion to  amuse  his  little  brother,  who  was  ill.  He  went 
reluctantly,  but  without  murmuring,  for  the  government 
of  his  parents  was  of  a  nature  that  no  child  would  think 
of  resisting.  His  task  was  to  build  a  cob  house.  He 
laid  an  unusually  strong  foundation,  with  unaccountable 
slowness  and  hesitation,  and  was  very  deliberately  proceed- 


14 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


ing  with  the  superstructure,  when  suddenly  he  exclaimed  : 
"  That's  it !  I've  got  it !  "  and  sending  the  materials  for 
the  half-built  house  rolling  about  the  room,  he  hurried 
off  to  his  chamber  to  record  the  result.  The  problem 
was  solved,  the  dollar  was  won,  and  the  boy's  reputation 
established. 

At  the  age  of  ten  he  was  sent  to  one  Captain  Morton, 
of  whom  he  took  lessons  in  navigation,  in  which  he  is 
said  to  have  made  decided  progress.  In  the  grammar 
school  he  was  noted  for  his  proficiency  in  the  Greek 
language.  His  schoolmates  nicknamed  him  "  Virgil,"  or 
in  allusion  to  the  peculiar  style  of  the  hat  which  he 
wore,  as  well  as  to  his  studious  habits,  "  old  Virgil 
dug  up."  As  a  boy  he  was  spirited,  self-confident, 
and  exceedingly  enthusiastic,  very  active  and  energetic, 
but  fonder  of  his  books  than  of  play.  His  sister  ha? 
a  vivid  recollection  of  his  afl^ectiouate  tenderness  to- 
ward her,  and  of  his  great  kindness  to  the  inferior 
animals.  He  was  very  fond  of  desultory  reading ;  and 
as  there  were  no  books  for  children  at  that  period,  he 
alternated  between  the  books  of  theology  found  in  his 
father's  library,  and  the  novels  of  Richardson  and 
Fielding,  or  the  plays  of  Ben  Jonson,  which  he  wiie 
able  to  borrow  in  the  neighborhood.  It  is  not  probable 
that  his  father  encouraged  this  latter  class  of  reading, 
but  the  habits  of  selfniependeuce  which  he  had  thought 
proper  to  cultivate  in  his  son,  left  his  hours  of  leisure 
mostly  untrammelled;  and  seeing  the  greediness  with 
which  the  boy  occasionally  devoured  books  of  the  gravest 
character,  it  very  likely  had  not  occurred  to  him  that  he 
could  feel  the  least  possible  interest  in  any  work  of  the 
imagination. 

Before  Adoniram  was  twelve  years  of  age,  he  had 


I 


EARLY  YEARS 


15 


heard  visitors  at  his  father's  talk  a  great  deal  of  a  new  ex- 
position of  the  Apocalypse,  which  they  pronounced  a  work 
of  rare  interest.  Now  the  Revelation  was  the  book  that, 
of  all  others  in  the  Bible,  he  delighted  most  to  read,  and 
he  had  searched  the  few  commentators  his  father  possessed 
without  getting  much  light  upon  its  mysteries.  The  new 
exposition  was  owned  by  a  very  awe-inspiring  gentleman 
in  the  neighborhood ;  but  Adoniram  felt  that  he  imist 
have  it,  and  after  contending  a  long  time  with  his  bash- 
fulness,  he  at  last  determined  on  begging  the  loan  of  it. 
He  presented  himself  in  the  great  man's  library,  and  was 
coldly  and  sternly  refused.  For  once  his  grief  and  moi'- 
tification  were  so  great  that  he  could  not  conceal  the  affair 
from  his  father.  He  received  more  sympathy  than  he 
anticipated.  "  Not  lend  it  to  you ! "  said  the  good  man, 
indignantly;  "I  wish  he  could  understand  it  half  as 
weU.  You  shall  have  books,  Adoniram,  just  as  many  as 
you  can  read,  and  I'll  go  to  Boston  myself  for  them." 
He  performed  his  promise,  but  the  desired  work  on  the 
Apocalypse,  perhaps  for  judicious  reasons,  was  not  ob- 
tained. 

In  the  year  1800,  the  family  removed  to  Braintree, 
Mass.,  and  two  years  later,  when  Adoniram  was  fourteen 
years  old,  took  up  their  abode  in  the  old  historic  town  of 
Plymouth.  In  1804  he  entered  Rhode  Island  College — 
now  Brown  University — one  year  in  advance.  Dur- 
ing his  college  course  he  was  a  hard  student;  and  in 
1807,  at  the  age  of  nineteen,  was  graduated  the  valedicto- 
rian of  his  class,  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  for  six  weeks  of 
the  senior  year  he  was  absent,  engaged  in  teaching  school 
in  Plymouth.  He  was  ambitious  to  excel,  and  a  classmate 
says  of  him,  he  has  no  recollection  of  his  ever  failing,  or 
even  hesitating,  in  recitation.    He  had  a  powerful  rival 


16 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


in  bis  friend  Bailey/^and  this  probably  added  zest  to  his 
ambition.  When  he  received  the  highest  appointment  in 
the  commencement  exercises,  his  delight  knew  no  bounds. 
He  hurried  to  his  room,  and  wrote,  "  Dear  father,  I  have 
got  it.  Your  affectionate  son,  A.  J."  He  then  took  a  cir- 
cuitous route  to  the  post-oifice,  that  he  might  quiet  the 
violent  throbbing  of  his  heart,  and  appear  with  propriety 
^  before  his  classmates,  and  especially  before  his  rival  friend. 
In  the  autumn  of  1807,  young  Judson  opened  in  Ply- 
mouth a  private  academy,  which  he  taught  for  nearly  a 
year.  During  this  time  he  also  published  two  text-books, 
"The  Elements  of  English  Grammar,"  and  "The  Young 
Lady's  Arithmetic."  But  the  most  important  event  of 
this  period  of  his  life  was  his  conversion. 

When  about  fourteen  years  of  age,  his  studies  were 
interrupted  by  a  serious  illness,  by  which  he  was  reduced 
to  a  state  of  extreme  weakness,  and  for  a  long  time 
his  recovery  was  doubtfuL  It  was  more  than  a  year 
before  he  was  able  to  resume  his  customary  occupations. 
Previous  to  this  he  had  been  too  actively  engaged  to 
devote  much  time  to  thought ;  but  as  soon  as  the  violence 
of  the  disease  subsided,  he  spent  many  long  days  and 
nights  in  reflecting  on  his  future  course.  His  plans  were 
of  the  most  extravagantly  ambitious  chai'acter.  Now  he 
was  an  orator,  now  a  poet,  now  a  statesman  ;  but  whatever 
his  character  or  profession,  he  was  sure  in  his  castle- 
building  to  attain  the  highest  eminence.  After  a  time, 
one  thought  crept  into  his  mind  and  embittered  all  his 
musings.  Suppose  he  should  attain  the  very  highest 
pinnacle  of  which  human  nature  is  capable ;  what  then  ? 
Could  he  hold  his  honors  forever?  His  favorites  of 
other  ages  had  long  since  turned  to  dust,  and  what 

I  The  late  Hon.  John  Bailey,  member  of  CJongress  from  Massachusetts, 


EAELY  YEARS 


17 


was  it  to  them  that  the  world  still  praised  them  ?  What 
would  it  be  to  him,  when  a  hundred  years  had  gone  by, 
that  America  had  never  known  his  equal  ?  He  did  not 
wonder  that  Alexander  wept  when  at  the  summit  of  his 
ambition  ;  he  felt  very  sure  that  he  should  have  wept  too. 
Then  he  would  become  alarmed  at  the  extent  of  his  own 
wicked  soarings,  and  try  to  comfort  himself  with  the 
idea  that  it  was  all  the  result  of  the  fever  in  his  brain. 

One  day  his  mind  reverted  to  religious  pursuits.  Yes, 
an  eminent  divine  was  very  well,  though  he  should  of 
course  prefer  something  more  brilliant.  Gradually,  and 
without  his  being  aware  of  his  own  train  of  thought,  his 
mind  instituted  a  comparison  between  the  great  worldly 
divine,  toiling  for  the  same  perishable  objects  as  his  other 
favorites,  and  the  humble  minister  of  the  gospel,  labor- 
ing only  to  please  God  and  benefit  his  fellow-men.  There 
was  (so  he  thought)  a  sort  of  sublimity  about  that,  after 
all.  Surely  the  world  was  all  wrong,  or  such  a  self- 
abjuring  man  would  be  its  hero.  Ah,  but  the  good  man 
had  a  reputation  more  enduring !  Yes,  yes,  his  fame  was 
sounded  before  him  as  he  entered  the  other  world ;  and 
that  was  the  only  fame  worthy  of  the  possession,  because 
the  only  one  that  triumphed  over  the  grave.  Suddenly,  in 
the  midst  of  his  self-gratulation,  the  words  flashed  across 
his  mind,  "  Not  unto  us,  not  unto  us,  but  to  Thy  name  be 
the  glory."  He  was  confounded.  Not  that  he  had  actu- 
ally made  himself  the  representative  of  this  last  kind  of 
greatness — it  was  not  sufficiently  to  his  taste  for  that ; 
but  he  had  ventured  on  dangerous  ground,  and  he  was 
startled  by  a  flood  of  feelings  that  had  till  now  remained 
dormant.  He  had  always  said  and  thought,  so  far  as  he 
had  thought  anything  about  it,  that  he  wished  to  become 
truly  religious ;  but  now  religion  seemed  so  entirely  op 

B 


18 


ADONIEAM  JUDSON 


posed  to  all  his  ambitious  plans  that  he  was  afraid  to 
look  into  his  heart  lest  he  should  discover  what  he  did 
not  like  to  confess,  even  to  himself — that  he  did  not  want 
to  become  a  Christian.  He  was  fully  awake  to  the  vanity 
of  worldly  pursuits,  and  was,  on  the  whole,  prepared  to 
yield  the  palm  of  excellence  to  religious  ones;  but  his 
father  had  often  said  he  would  one  day  be  a  great  man, 
and  a  great  man  he  had  resolved  to  be. 

It  was  at  this  period  that  French  infidelity  was  sweep- 
ing over  the  land  like  a  flood,  and  free  inquiry  in 
matters  of  religion  was  supposed  to  constitute  part  of  the 
education  of  every  man  of  spirit.  Young  Judson  did  not 
escape  the  contamination.    In  the  class  above  him  was  a 

young  man  by  the  name  of  E  who  was  amiable, 

talented,  witty,  exceedingly  agreeable  in  person  and 
manners,  but  who  was  a  confirmed  deist.  A  very  strong 
friendship  sprang  up  between  the  two  young  men, 
founded  on  similar  tastes  and  sympathies,  and  Judson 
soon  became,  at  least  professedly,  as  great  an  unbeliever 
as  his  friend.  The  subject  of  a  profession  was  often  dis- 
cussed between  them.  At  one  time  they  proposed  enter- 
ing the  law,  because  it  aflTorded  so  wide  ^  scope  for 
political  ambition ;  and  at  another  they  discussed  their 
own  dramatic  powers,  with  a  view  to  writing  pla}  s. 

Immediately  on  closing  the  school  at  Plymouth,  Judson 
set  out  on  a  tour  through  the  Northern  States.  After 
visiting  some  of  the  New  England  States,  he  left  the 
horse  with  which  his  father  had  furnished  him  with  an 
uncle  in  Sheffield,  Conn.,  and  proceeded  to  Albany  to  see 
the  wonder  of  the  world,  the  newly  invented  Robert 
Fulton  steamer.  She  was  about  proceeding  on  her  second 
trip  to  New  York,  and  he  gladly  took  passage  in  her. 
The  magnificent  scenery  of  the  Hudson  had  then  excited 


EARLY  YEARS 


19 


comparatively  little  atteutioD,  and  its  novelty  and  sub- 
limity could  not  fail  to  make  a  deep  and  lasting  impres- 
sion on  one  of  Judson's  ardent  and  adventurous  spirit. 
Indeed,  during  his  last  illness,  he  described  it  with  all  the 
enthusiasm  that  might  have  characterized  his  youth.  His 
name  was  frequently  mistaken  for  that  of  Johnson ;  and 
it  occurred  to  him  that,  in  the  novel  scenes  before  him, 
he  might  as  well  use  this  convenient  disguise,  in  order  to 
see  as  deeply  into  the  world  as  possible.  He  therefore, 
without  actually  giving  out  the  name  with  distinctness 
or  ever  writing  it  down,  became  Mr.  Johnson.  He  had 
not  been  long  in  New  York  before  he  contrived  to  attach 
himself  to  a  theatrical  company,  not  with  the  design  of 
entering  upon  the  stage,  but  partly  for  the  purpose  of 
familiarizing  himself  with  its  regulations  in  case  he 
should  enter  upon  his  literary  projects,  and  partly  from 
curiosity  and  love  of  adventure. 

Before  setting  out  upon  his  tour  he  had  unfolded  his 
infidel  sentiments  to  his  father,  and  had  been  treated  with 
the  severity  natural  to  a  masculine  mind  that  has  never 
doubted,  and  to  a  parent  who,  after  having  made  innum- 
erable sacrifices  for  the  son  of  his  pride  and  love,  sees 
him  rush  recklessly  on  to  his  own  destruction.  His 
mother  was  none  the  less  distressed,  and  she  wept,  and 
prayed,  and  expostulated.  He  knew  his  superiority  to 
his  father  in  argument ;  but  he  had  nothing  to  oppose  to 
his  mother's  tears  and  warnings,  and  they  followed  hijn 
now  wherever  he  went.  He  knew  that  he  was  on  the 
verge  of  a  life  he  despised.  On  no  consideration  would 
he  see  a  young  brother  in  his  position;  but  "I,"  he 
thought,  "  am  in  no  danger — I  am  only  seeing  the  world 
— the  dark  side  of  it,  as  well  as  the  bright ;  and  I  have 
too  much  self-respect  to  do  anything  mean  or  vicious." 


20 


ADONIEAM  JUDSON 


After  seeing  what  lie  wished  of  New  York,  he  returned 
to  Sheffield  for  his  horse,  intending  to  pursue  his  journey 
westward.  His  uncle.  Rev.  Ephraim  Jwdson,  was  absent, 
and  a  very  pious  young  man  occupied  his  place.  His 
conversation  was  characterized  by  a  godly  sincerity,  a 
solemn  but  gentle  earnestness  which  addressed  itself  to 
the  heart,  and  Judson  went  away  deeply  impressed. 

The  next  night  he  stopped  at  a  country  inn.  The 
landlord  mentioned,  as  he  lighted  him  to  his  room,  that 
he  had  been  obliged  to  place  him  next  door  to  a  young 
man  who  was  exceedingly  ill,  probably  in  a  dying  state ; 
but  he  hoped  that  it  would  occasion  him  no  uneasiness. 
Judson  assured  him  that,  beyond  pity  for  the  poor  sick 
man,  he  should  have  no  feeling  whatever,  and  that  now, 
having  heard  of  the  circumstance,  his  pity  would  not  of 
course  be  increased  by  the  nearness  of  the  object.  But  it 
was  nevertheless  a  very  restless  night.  Sounds  came 
from  the  sick  chamber — sometimes  the  movements  of  the 
watchers,  sometimes  the  groans  of  the  sufferer;  but  it 
was  not  these  which  disturbed  him.  He  thought  of  what 
the  landlord  had  said — the  stranger  was  probably  in  a 
dying  state ;  and  was  he  prepared  ?  Alone,  and  in  the 
dead  of  night,  he  felt  a  flush  of  shame  steal  over  him  at 
the  question,  for  it  proved  the  shallowness  of  his  phi- 
losophy.   What  would  his  late  companions  say  to  his 

weakness?    The  clear-minded,  intellectual,  witty  E  , 

what  would  he  say  to  such  consummate  boyishness  ?  But 
still  his  thoughts  would  revert  to  the  sick  man.  Was  he 
a  Christian,  calm  and  strong  in  the  hope  of  a  glorious 
immortality,  or  was  he  shuddering  upon  the  brink  of  a 
dark,  unknown  future?  Perhaps  he  was  a  "  freethinker," 
educated  by  Christian  parents,  and  prayed  over  by  a 
Christian  mother.    The  landlord  had  described  him  as  a 


EARLY  YEAES 


21 


young  man ;  and  in  imagination  he  was  forced  to  place 
himself  upon  the  dying  bed,  though  he  strove  with  all 
his  might  against  it.  At  last  morning  came,  and  the 
bright  flood  of  light  which  it  poured  into  his  chamber 
dispelled  all  his  "  superstitious  illusions."  As  soon  as  he 
had  risen,  he  went  in  search  of  the  landlord,  and  inquired 
for  his  fellow-lodger. 

"  lie  is  dead,"  was  the  reply. 

"  Dead ! " 

"  Yes ;  he  is  gone — poor  fellow !    The  doctor  said  he 
would  probably  not  survive  the  night." 
"  Do  you  know  who  he  was  ? " 

"  Oh,  yes ;  it  was  a  young  man  from  Rhode  Island  Col- 
lege— a  very  fine  fellow  ;  his  name  was  E  ."  Judson 

was  completely  stunned.  After  hours  had  passed,  he 
knew  not  how,  he  attempted  to  pursue  his  journey.  But 
one  single  thought  occupied  his  mind,  and  the  words, 
dead !  lo&t !  lost !  were  continually  ringing  in  his  ears. 
He  knew  the  religion  of  the  Bible  to  be  true ;  he  felt  its 
truth  ;  and  he  was  in  despair.  In  this  state  of  mind  he 
resolved  to  abandon  his  scheme  of  traveling,  and  at  once 
turned  his  horse's  head  toward  Plymouth. 

He  arrived  at  Plymouth,  September  22,  1808,  and  in 
October  of  the  same  year  entered  the  Theological  Insti- 
tution at  Andover,  one  year  in  advance.  As  he  was 
neither  a  professor  of  religion  nor  a  candidate  for  the 
ministry,  he  was  admitted  only  by  special  favor.  On  the 
2d  of  December,  1808,  he  made  a  solemn  dedication  of 
himself  to  God,  and  on  the  28th  of  May,  1809,  at  the 
age  of  twenty-one,  he  joined  the  Third  Congregational 
Church  in  Plymouth.  His  conversion  involved  in  itself 
a  consecration  to  the  Christian  ministry. 


CHAPTER  II 


CONSECRATION  TO  MISSIONARY  LIFE.  lvS09-1812 

IN  September,  1809,  young  Judson,  at  the  a&:e  of 
twenty-one,  began  to  ponder  seriously  the  aubjecl  of 
foreign  missions.  He  had  just  finished  his  first  of 
study  at  Andover ;  another  year  of  the  theological 
course  remained.  At  this  time  there  fell  into  his  hands 
a  sermon  preached  in  the  parish  church  of  Bristol,  Eng- 
land, by  Dr.  Claudius  Buchanan,  who  had  for  many 
years  been  a  chaplain  in  the  semce  of  the  British  East 
India  Company.  The  sermon  was  entitled,  "  The  Star  in 
the  East,"  and  had  for  its  text  Matt.  2:2:"  For  we  have 
seen  his  star  in  the  east,  and  are  come  to  worship  him." 
The  leading  thought  of  the  sermon  was  the  evi.-'.ences  of 
the  divine  power  of  the  Christian  religion  in  the  East. 
Dr.  Buchanan  described  the  progress  of  the  gospel  in 
India,  and  especially  the  labors  of  the  venerable  German 
missionary,  Scliwartz.  This  sermon  fell  like  a  spark 
into  the  tinder  of  Judson's  soul. 

Six  months  from  the  time  of  his  reading  this  sermon,  he 
made  the  final  resolve  to  become  a  missionary  to  the 
heathen.  This  was  in  Februaiy,  1810.  He  was,  no 
doubt,  stimulated  to  form  this  purpose  by  close  contact 
with  several  other  young  men  of  like  aspirations.  His 
earliest  missionary  associate  was  Samuel  Nott,  Jr.,  wlio 
entered  the  seminary  early  in  the  year  1810,  and  was 
even  then  weighing  the  question  whether  he  should  devote 
himself  to  the  work  of  carrying  the  gospel  to  the  heathen. 
22 


The  Haystack  Monument  at  Williamstown,  Mass. 
Adoniram  .Tiidsou.  Page  23. 


CONSECRATION  TO  MISSIONARY  LIFE  23 


About  the  same  time  there  came  to  Andover  four  young 
men  from  Williams  College — Samuel  J.  Mills,  Jr.,  James 
Richards,  Luther  Rice,  and  Gordon  Hall,  While  in 
college  these  students  formed  a  missionary  society,  and 
they  were  accustomed  to  meet  together  at  night  beneath 
a  haystack  near  the  college  grounds.  At  Williamstown, 
on  the  spot  where  now  stands  the  famous  Haystack 
Monument,  these  young  men  consecrated  themselves  to 
the  work  of  foreign  missions,  and  poured  out  their  fer- 
vent j)rayers  for  the  conversion  of  the  world ;  and  this 
green  nook  among  the  Berkshire  hills  may  well  be  called 
the  birthplace  of  American  foreign  missions. 

As  great  scientific  discoveries  have  seemed  to  spring  up 
almost  simultaneously  in  the  minds  of  independent  and 
widely  separated  thinkers,  sometimes  engendering  a  strife 
as  to  the  original  discoverer,  so  this  grand  thought  of 
evangelizing  the  heathen  seems  to  have  been  in  the 
atmosphere,  and  to  have  floated  at  almost  the  same  time 
into  the  hearts  of  different  young  men  living  far  apart. 
Christian  society  was  like  a  field  which,  having  been 
ploughed  and  sown,  has  folded  up  in  its  bosom  a  potency 
of  growth.  Judson  and  his  associates  were  like  the  first 
green  shoots,  scattered  far  and  wide,  that  appear  above 
the  ground  and  promise  to  be  followed  by  countless 
others.  It  was  after  long  meditation  and  prayer,  and  in 
communion  with  kindred  glowing  spirits,  that  the 
thought  in  Judson's  mind  of  consecrating  himself  to  the 
foreign  missionary  work  became  a  fixed  purpose. 

There  were  many  obstacles  in  the  way.  He  was  not 
going  among  the  heathen  because  he  could  not  find  suit- 
able employment  at  home.  He  had  received  a  tutor's 
appointment  iu  Bi'own  University  and  had  declined  it. 
The  Rev.  Dr.  Griffin  had  proposed  him  as  his  colleague 


24 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


in  "  the  largest  church  in  Boston."  "  And  you  will  be 
so  near  home,"  his  mother  said.  "  No !  "  was  his  reply. 
"  I  shall  never  live  in  Boston.  I  have  much  farther  than 
that  to  go."  The  ambitious  hopes  of  his  father  were 
overthrown  ;  and  his  mother  and  sister  shed  many  re- 
gretful tears.  He  did  not  go  abroad  because  he  was  not 
wanted  at  home. 

But  what  steps  did  he  and  his  young  associates  take  in 
order  to  execute  their  sublime  purpose  ?  There  was  at 
that  time  no  foreign  missionary  society  in  America  to 
which  they  could  offer  their  services,  and  which  would 
undertake  their  support  in  the  foreign  field.  There  was, 
indeed,  the  Massachusetts  Missionary  Society,  founded  in 
1799,  the  object  of  which  was  to  diffuse  a  missionary 
spirit  among  the  Congregational  churches  in  New  Eng- 
land, and  to  carry  the  gospel  to  the  Indians  and  to  the 
newly  settled  parts  of  our  own  land.  But  this  society 
had  not  yet  launched  upon  the  work  of  foreign  missions ; 
and  so  Mr.  Judson  and  the  young  men  who  shared  his 
purpose  first  proposed  to  each  other  to  enlist  as  mission- 
aries under  the  London  Missionary  Society.  Accord- 
ingly Mr.  Judson  wrote  a  letter  to  that  effect  to  the  ven- 
erable Dr.  Bogue,  the  president  of  the  seminary  in  Gos- 
port,  England,  where  the  missionaries  of  the  London 
society  received  their  training. 

While  awaiting  a  reply  to  this  letter,  he  and  his  associ- 
ates made  their  desires  known  to  their  teachers  in  the 
seminary,  and  to  several  influential  ministers  in  the 
vicinity.  The  professors  and  ministers  met  for  consulta- 
tion on  the  matter  at  the  house  of  Prof  Stuart,  in  Ando- 
ver,  on  Monday,  June  25,  1810.  These  wise  and  con- 
servative men  advised  the  students  to  submit  their  case  to 
the  General  Association,  a  body  representing  all  the  Con- 


CONSECRATION  TO  MISSIONARY  LIFE  25 

gregational  churches  of  the  State  of  Massachusetts,  and 
which  was  to  meet  at  Bradford  the  next  day. 

Thus  the  action  of  these  students  led  to  the  organiza- 
tion of  the  American  Board  of  Commissioners  for 
Foreign  Missions,  a  society  widely  known  and  justly 
revered  at  the  present  day  as  the  missionary  organ  of  the 
Congregational  church  of  America,  and  indeed  the  mother 
of  American  foreign  missionary  societies. 

The  nine  men  originally  forming  this  Board  distrusted 
their  ability  to  support  in  the  foreign  field  those  who  had 
offered  their  services.  They  feared  that  the  missionary 
sentiment  among  the  churches  of  New  England  was 
hardly  strong  enough  as  yet  to  undertake  so  great  an 
enterprise ;  and  so  they  turned  instinctively  to  their 
brethren  in  England,  represented  in  the  Loudon  Mission- 
ary Society,  for  aid  and  co-operation.  They  accordingly 
sent  Mr.  Judson  to  England  to  ascertain  whether  such 
co-operation  would  be  agreeable  to  the  Loudon  society. 

The  English  directors  gave  Mr.  Judson  a  most  courteous 
and  affectionate  greeting,  but  a  joint  conduct  of  the  mis- 
sions did  not  seem  practicable  to  them.  They  were  will- 
ing to  receive  and  support  Mr.  Judson  and  his  associates 
as  their  own  missionaries,  but  did  not  feel  disposed  to 
admit  the  American  Board  to  a  participation  with  them 
in  the  direction  of  the  work.  Such  co-operation  might 
occasion  complications,  and  they  wisely  thought  that 
American  Christians  were  able  to  take  care  of  their  own 
missionaries. 

Mr.  Judson  embarked  for  England,  January  11,  1811, 
on  the  English  ship  "  Packet."  She  was  captured  on  the 
way  by  a  French  privateer,  and  so  he  was  subjected  to 
compulsory  detention  and  imprisonment  in  France.  On 
the  6th  of  May  he  arrived  in  London,  and  on  the  18th 


26 


ADONIEAM  JUDSON 


of  June  he  embarked  at  Gravesend,  in  the  ship  •'Augus- 
tus," bound  for  New  York,  where  he  arrived  on  the  17th 
of  August. 

Soon  after  Mr.  Judson  returned  to  America,  on  the 
18th  of  September,  1811,  the  American  Board  of  Com- 
missioners for  Foreign  Missions  met  at  Worcester,  Mass., 
and  advised  him  and  his  associates  not  to  place  them- 
selves at  present  under  the  direction  of  the  London  Mis- 
sionary Society.  It  was  also  voted  that  "  Messrs.  Adonirara 
Judsou,  Jr.,  Samuel  Nott,  Jr.,  Samuel  Newell,  and  Gor- 
don Hall  be  appointed  missionaries  to  labor  under  the 
direction  of  this  Board  in  Asia,  either  in  the  Burman 
Empire,  or  in  Su'rat,  or"  in  Prince  of  Wales  Island,  or 
elsewbere,  as  in  the  view  of  the  Prudential  Committee, 
Prov'idence  shall  open  tlie  most  favorable  door."  Tlius 
tire  way  was  prepared  for  Mr.  Judson  to  realize  his  ardent 
desire  to  become  a  missionary  to  the  heathen. 

But  he  was  not  to  go  alone,  for  he  was  already  be- 
trothed to  Miss  Ann  Hasseltine.  They  met  for  the  first 
time  on  the  memorable  occasion  already  described,  when 
in  June,  1810,  the  General  Association  held  its  session  at 
Bradford,  and  young  Judson  and  his  fellow  students  mod- 
estly made  known  their  desires  to  attempt  a  mission  to  the 
heathen.  The  story  is  told  that  during  the  sessions  the 
ministers  gathered  for  a  dinner  beneath  Mr.  Hasseltine'a 
roof.  His  youngest  daughter,  Ann,  Avas  waiting  on  the 
table.  Her  attention  was  attracted  to  the  young  student 
whose  bold  missionary  projects  were  making  such  a  stir. 
But  what  was  her  surprise  to  observe,  as  she  moved  about 
the  table,  that  he  seemed  completely  absorbed  in  his 
plate !  Little  did  she  dream  that  she  had  already  wovec 
her  spell  about  his  young  heart,  and  that  he  was  at  that 
very  time  composing  a  graceful  stanza  in  her  praise. 


CONSECEATION  TO  MISSIONARY  LIFE  27 


She  was  bom  in  Bradford,  December  22, 1789,  and  was 
about  a  year,  younger  than  Mr  Judson.  Her  parents 
were  John  and  Rebecca  Hasseltine.  She  had  an  ardent, 
active,  even  restless  temperament ;  so  that  her  mother 
once  reproved  her  in  childhood  with  the  ominous  words, 
"I  hope,  my  daughter,  you  will  one  day  be  satisfied  witi) 
rambling."'  She  was  educated  at  the  Bradford  Academy, 
and  was  a  beautiful  girl,  characterized  by  great  vivacity 
of  spirits  and  intensely  fond  of  society.  In  f\ict,  slie  was 
so  reckless  in  her  gayety,  and  so  far  outstripped  her 
young  companions  in  mirth,  that  they  feared  she  would 
have  but  a  brief  life,  and  be  suddenly  cut  off.  At  the 
age  of  sixteen  she  was  converted,  and  threw  herself  with 
all  her  native  ardor  into  the  joys  and  labors  of  the  Chris- 
tian life.  She  taught  school  for  several  years  in  Salem, 
Haverhill,  and  Newbury.  Her  constant  endeavor  was 
to  bring  her  pupils  to  the  Saviour. 

Her  decision  to  become  a  foreign  missionary  must  have 
required  great  heroism,  for  thus  far  no  woman  had  ever 
left  America  as  a  missionary  to  the  heathen.  Public 
sentiment  was  against  her  going.  It  was  thought  to  be 
wild  and  romantic.  One  good  lady  said  to  another,  "  I 
hear  that  Miss  Hasseltine  is  going  to  India  !  Why  does 
she  go?"  "Why,  she  thinks  it  her  duty.  Wouldn't 
you  go  if  you  thought  it  your  duty  ?  "  "  But,"  replied 
the  lady,  with  emphasis,  "I  would  not  think  it  mv 
duty !  "  ^ 

On  the  5th  of  February,  1812,  Mr.  Judson  and  Ann 
Hasseltine,  were  married  at  Bradford.  Two  days  before, 
at  Plymouth,  he  had  taken  final  leave  of  his  parents, 
and  his  brother  Elnathan  accompanied  him  to  Boston. 


iFor  further  particulars  concerning  Miss  Hassel tine's  early  life  the  reader 
is  referred  to  her  biography,  by  the  Rev.  J.  D.  Knowles. 


28 


ADONIEAM  JUDSON 


The  journey  was  made  on  horseback,  and  at  the  time 
Elnathan  had  not  been  converted.  While  on  the  way 
the  two  dismounted,  and  among  the  trees  by  the  roadside 
they  knelt,  and  there  Adoniram  offered  a  fervent  prayer 
in  behalf  of  his  younger  brother.  Four  days  later  they 
parted,  never  to  meet  again  on  earth.  The  wayside 
prayer  was  not  unheeded  in  heaven.  Years  afterward, 
Adoniram  was  permitted  to  have  the  assurance  that  the 
brother  over  whom  his  heart  so  fondly  yearned  became 
an  "  inheritor  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven." 

On  the  6th  of  February,  he  received  ordination  at 
Salem  from  the  Rev.  Drs.  Spring,  Worcester,  Woods, 
Morse,  and  Griffin ;  on  the  7th  he  bade  good-bye  to  his 
younger  sister  and  companion  of  his  childhood ;  and  on 
the  19th  embarked  at  Salem,  with  Mrs.  Judson,  and  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Newell,  on  the  brig  "Caravan,"  Captain 
Heard,  bound  for  Calcutta. 


CHAPTER  III 


VOYAGE  TO  BURMA.     1812,  1813 

AFTER  the  shores  of  America  had  faded  from  tbeir 
eyes,  almost  four  months  elapsed  before  Mr,  Jud- 
son  and  his  missionary  associates  caught  sight  of  land. 
They  made  the  long  trip  around  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope, 
and  at  last  descried  the  towering  mountains  of  Golconda. 
Now  that  the  Suez  Canal  has  been  opened,  and  a  railroad 
track  laid  across  our  continent,  the  missionary  to  India 
goes  either  through  the  Mediterranean  Sea,  or  by  the  way 
of  San  Francisco  and  Yokohama,  and  the  voyage  con- 
sumes only  about  two  months. 

While  taking  the  long  voyage  from  America  to  India, 
Mr.  Judson  changed  his  denominational  latitude  and 
longitude  as  well.  He  was  a  Congregational  minister ; 
his  parents  were  Congregation alists  ;  and  he  had  been 
sent  out  by  a  Congregational  Board.  All  his  sympathies 
and  affections  were  bound  up  with  the  life  of  that  great 
denominational  body.  On  his  way  to  Burma,  how- 
ever, he  became  a  Baptist.  His  attention  was  at  this 
time  especially  drawn  to  the  distinctive  views  of  the 
Baptists  by  the  fact  that  he  was  now  about  to  found  a 
new  Christian  society  among  the  heathen.  AVhen  the 
adult  heathen  accepted  Christ  by  faith  and  love  he 
should  of  course  be  baptized,  and  thus  formally  initiated 
into  the  Christian  church.  But,  ought  the  children  also 
to  be  baptized  upon  the  strength  of  the  parents'  faith  ? 
This  was  a  practical  question. 

29 


30 


ADONIEAM  JUDSON 


Again,  Mr.  Judson  expected  to  meet  in  India  the  emi- 
nent English  Baptist  missionaries,  Carey,  iMarshman.  and 
Ward.  In  the  immediate  neigliborhood  of  tliese  men 
he  proposed  to  institute  a  Congregationaiist  form  of 
church  life,  and  he  would  of  course  have  to  explain  to 
the  natives  these  denominational  differences,  iiis  mind 
was  cast  in  a  scholarly  and  argumentative  mold.  Con- 
troversy might  possibly  arise  between  himself  and  the 
Baptist  missionaries.  He  thought  it  best  while  he  wa& 
on  the  ocean  to  arm  himself  beforehand  for  the  encounter 
with  these  formidable  champions,  in  order  successfully  to 
maintain  the  Pedobaptist  position. 

In  the  enforced  seclusion  of  a  long  sea  voyage  he  had 
plenty  of  time  for  thought  and  study  on  this  important 
subject.  The  result  of  his  search  and  investigation  was 
the  conclusion,  reluctantly  formed,  that  he  was  wrong 
and  that  the  Baptists  were  right.  Of  course  they  held 
many  fundamental  doctrines  in  common  with  Christians 
of  all  other  evangelical  denominations ;  but  there  were 
two  distinctive  tenets,  that  faith  should  always  precede 
baptism,  and  that  baptism  is  immersion.  He  was  con- 
vinced that  in  these  views  they  had  the  Bible  on  their 
side. 

It  was  only  after  a  great  struggle  that  he  yielded ;  for 
he  had  to  break  with  all  the  traditions  and  associations 
of  his  ancestry  and  childhood.  He  pictured  to  liimself 
the  grief  and  disappointment  of  his  Christian  friends  in 
America,  especially  of  his  venerable  parents.  He  saw 
that  he  would  be  separated  from  those  young  students, 
the  choice  companions  with  whom  he  had  originated  this 
great  scheme  of  American  foreign  missions.  In  their 
discussions,  his  wife  always  took  the  Pedobaptist  side. 
He  knew  that  he  and  she  might  find  themselves  without 


VOYAGE  TO  BURMA 


31 


bread  in  a  strange,  heathen  land.  For  who  could  expect 
the  American  Board  to  sustain  a  Baptist  missionary, 
even  if  he  could  on  his  part  obey  their  instructions?  He 
could  have  little  hope  that  the  Baptists  of  America, 
feeble,  scattered,  and  despised,  would  be  equal  to  the 
great  undertaking  of  supporting  an  expensive  mission  in 
distant  India.  Ah !  what  long  anxious  conversations 
must  he  and  his  wife  have  had  together  in  their  little 
cabin  on  the  brig  "  Caravan." 

The  question  may  have  arisen  in  his  mind,  are  these  doc- 
trines so  important  after  all  ?  Can  I  not  cherish  them  in 
secret,  and  still  remain  identified  with  the  religious  body 
that  I  so  much  love  and  honor  ?  No ;  because  if  indi- 
vidual faith  is  the  prerequisite  of  baptism,  what  script- 
ural authority  would  we  have  for  baptizing  the  uncon- 
scious infant?  If  baptism  is  a  symbol,  then  of  course 
the  form ^ is  all  important.  If  faith  must  precede  bap- 
tism, and  if  immersion  is  essential  to  baptism,  then  he 
himself  had  never  been  baptized  at  all.  lie  knew  that 
baptism  had  been  expressly  commanded  by  our  blessed 
Lord,  and  that  alone  was  sufficient  to  necessitate  obedi- 
ence. Prompt  and  straightforward  obedience  to  Christ 
was  the  keynote  of  his  life.  His  was  too  positive  a  char- 
acter to  try  to  effect  a  compromise  between  conviction  and 
action.  He  had  one  of  those  great  natures  that  cannot 
afford  to  move  along  with  the  crowd. 

The  four  missionaries  arrived  in  Calcutta  on  June  17th, 
and  were  warmlv  welcomed  bv  Dr.  Carev.  Thev  were  in- 
vited  to  visit  the  settlement  of  English  Baptists  at  Seram- 
pore,  a  town  about  twelve  miles  from  Calcutta,  up  the 
Hugli  River.  Here  they  awaited  the  arrival  of  the  other 
group  of  American  missionaries,  Mr.  and  i\Irs.  Nott  and 
Messrs.  Hall  and  Rice,  who  had  sailed  from  Philadelphia 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


in  the  ship  "Harmony,"  and  who  did  not  arrive  until 
August  8th.  On  September  6th,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Judson  were 
baptized  in  Calcutta  by  the  Rev.  Mr,  Ward,  and  on  the  first 
of  November,  Mr.  Rice,  one  of  his  missionary  associates 
who,  though  sailing  on  a  different  vessel,  had  experienced 
a  similiar  change  of  sentiment,  was  also  baptized.  "  Mr. 
Rice  was  thought,"  Dr.  Carey  says,  "  to  be  the  most  obsti- 
nate Pedobaptist  of  any  of  the  missionaries." 

But  becoming  Baptists  was  only  the  beginning  of 
trouble  for  these  missionaries.  India  was  ruled  by  the 
East  India  Company,  which  was  opposed  to  the  intro- 
duction of  missionaries,  especially  of  Americans — for 
England  and  America  were  not  at  that  time  on  friendly 
terms.  Besides,  the  English  feared  that  the  natives  of 
India,  finding  themselves  beset  by  the  missionaries  of  a 
foreign  religion,  and  their  own  sacred  institutions  under- 
mined, would  rise  against  the  whole  English  race,  and  a 
war  ensue  which  would  be  rendered  more  intense  by  the 
spirit  of  religious  fanaticism.  The  Oriental  meekly  sub- 
mits to  oppression,  except  where  religious  questions  are 
involved  ;  it  was  the  greased  cartridge  which  brought  on 
the  Sepoy  rebellion.  The  English  authorities  feared,  as 
once  was  stated  in  the  House  of  Lords,  "  That  every 
missionary  would  have  to  be  backed  by  a  gunboat." 
There  might  arise  endless  complications,  and  they  deter- 
mined to  arrest  the  danger  before  it  really  began. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Judson  and  Mr.  Rice  were  peremptorily 
ordered  to  repair  from  Serampore  to  Calcutta.  When 
they  appeared  at  the  government  house  they  were  told 
that  they  must  at  once  return  to  America.  They  asked 
leave  to  settle  in  some  other  part  of  India,  but  this  was 
refused.  They  then  asked  if  they  could  go  to  the  Isle  of 
France  (Mauritius).    This  request  was  granted  ;  but  the 


VOYAGE  TO  BURMA 


33 


only  ship  then  setting  sail  for  that  port  could  convey  but 
two  passengers,  and  by  common  consent  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Newell  embarked.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Judson  and  Mr.  Rice 
remained  behind  for  another  vessel.  After  two  months, 
they  received  an  order  to  go  on  board  one  of  the  com- 
pany's vessels  bound  for  England,  and  their  names  were 
even  printed  in  the  official  list  of  passengers.  But  a 
vessel  named  the  "  Creole  "  was  just  about  to  sail  for  the 
Isle  of  France.  They  applied  to  the  government  for  a 
passport.  This  was  refused.  Then  they  asked  the  cap- 
tain if  he  would  take  them  without  a  passport.  He  said, 
good-naturedly,  "  There  was  his  ship ;  they  could  go  on 
board  if  they  pleased."  They  immediately  embarked 
under  cover  of  the  night.  But  while  sailing  down  the 
Hugli  River  from  Calcutta  to  the  sea  they  were  over- 
taken by  a  government  dispatch.  The  pilot  was  for- 
bidden to  go  farther,  as  there  were  persons  on  board  who 
had  been  ordered  to  England.  They  were  put  ashore  on 
the  bank  of  a  river  and  took  shelter  at  a  little  tavern, 
while  the  vessel  continued  her  course  down  the  river 
without  them. 

After  three  or  four  days,  however,  a  letter  came  from 
Calcutta  containing  the  much-desired  passport  to  sail  on 
the  "  Creole."  Who  procured  the  passport  has  always 
remained  a  mystery.  But  now  they  had  every  reason  to 
suppose  that  the  vessel  had  got  out  to  sea.  She  might, 
however,  be  anchored  at  Saugur,  seventy  miles  below. 
With  all  haste  they  put  their  baggage  in  a  boat  and  sped 
down  the  river.  They  had  to  row  against  the  tide,  but 
arrived  at  Saugur  before  the  evening  of  the  next  day,  and 
had  the  happiness  of  finding  the  vessel  at  anchor.  "  I 
never  enjoyed,"  says  Mrs.  Judson,  "a  sweeter  moment 
in  my  life  than  that  when  I  was  sure  we  were  in  sight 

C 


34 


ADONIEAM  JUDSON 


of  the  '  Creole.'  "  After  a  voyage  of  six  weeks  they  ar- 
rived in  Port  Louis,  on  the  Isle  of  France,  January  17, 
1813. 

The  Isle  of  France,  or  Mauritius,  lies  in  the  Indian 
Ocean,  four  hundred  and  eighty  miles  east  of  Madagas- 
car. It  is  about  thirty-six  miles  long  and  thirty-two 
wide.  It  had  only  a  few  years  before  been  wrested  from 
the  French  by  the  English.  During  the  wars  between 
the  French  and  the  English  it  had  furnished  harborage 
for  the  French  privateers  which,  sallying  forth  from  its 
ports,  attacked  the  richly  freighted  English  merchantmen 
on  their  way  from  England.  The  scene  of  St.  Pierre's 
pathetic  tale  of  "  Paul  and  Virginia,"  it  was  to  our  mis- 
sionaries also  who  took  refuge  here,  a  place  of  sorrow. 
They  learned  of  a  death  which  rivals  in  pathos  the  fate 
of  Virginia.  Mrs.  Harriet  Newell,  the  first  American 
martyr  to  foreign  missions,  had  only  just  survived  the 
tempestuous  voyage  from  Calcutta,  and  had  been  laid  in 
the  "heathy  ground"  of  Mauritius;  one  who  "for  the 
love  of  Christ  and  immortal  souls,  left  the  bosom  of  her 
friends  and  found  an  early  grave  in  a  land  of  strangers." 
She  never  repented  leaving  her  native  country.  When 
informed  by  her  physician  of  her  approaching  death,  she 
lifted  up  her  hands  in  triumph,  and  exclaimed,  "Oh, 
glorious  intelligence !  "  ^ 

What  a  sense  of  desolation  must  liave  crept  over  the 
little  band  of  missionaries,  now  that  death  had  so  early 
broken  into  their  ranks !  On  February  24th,  Mr.  Newell 
embarked  for  Ceylon,  and  on  the  15th  of  March,  Mr. 
Rice  sailed  for  America  in  order  to  preach  a  missionary 
crusade  among  the  Baptist  churches  there ;  and  thus  Mr. 


1  For  further  particulars  see  "  Memoir  of  Mrs.  Harriet  Newell,"  by  Dr. 
Leonard  Wuods. 


VOYAGE  TO  BUEMA 


35 


and  Mrs.  Judson  were  left  alone.  They  were  obliged  to 
remain  about  four  months  on  the  Isle  of  France ;  and 
while  much  of  their  time  was  spent  in  self-sacrificing 
labors  among  the  English  soldiers  who  formed  the  gar- 
rison of  the  island,  the  missionaries  still  longed  to  reach 
their  final  destination.  Mrs.  Judson  writes:  "  Oh,  when 
will  my  wanderings  terminate  ?  \\  hen  shall  I  find  s<jnie 
little  spot  that  I  can  call  my  own  ? "  Her  mother's 
ominous  words,  uttered  long  ago,  were  coming  true.  She 
was  indeed  having  her  fill  of  "rambling."  They  had 
left  America  nearly  fifteen  months  before,  and  yet  after 
all  their  journeyings  they  seemed  no  nearer  a  field  of 
labor  than  when  they  first  set  out.  Their  destination  was 
still  a  mirage — an  ever-dissolving  view. 

They  decided  to  make  another  descent  upon  the  coast 
of  India.  On  May  7,  1813,  they  embarked  on  the  ship 
*'  Countess  of  Harcourt,"  for  Madras,  intending  to  estab- 
lish a  mission  on  Pulo  Penang,  or  Prince  of  Wales 
Island,  lying  in  the  straits  of  INIalacca.  It  was  a  little 
island  of  commodious  harbors  and  salubrious  climate, 
which  had  recently  been  purchased  by  the  English,  and 
the  small  native  population  of  Malays  was  being  rapidly 
increased  by  emigration  from  Plindustan,  Burma,  Siam, 
and  China.  On  June  4th,  they  arrived  in  Madras,  where 
they  were  kindly  received  by  the  English  missionaries, 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Loveless.  But  they  knew  that  they  could 
not  remain  long,  for  they  were  again  under  the  jurisdic- 
tion of  the  East  India  Company.  Their  arrival  was  at 
once  reported  to  the  governor-general,  and  they  feared 
they  would  be  immediately  transported  to  England. 
There  was  no  vessel  in  the  harbor  bound  for  Pulo 
Penang,  and  the  only  vessel  about  to  sail  in  that  direction 
was  bound  for  Rangoon,  Burma.    They  dreaded  to  pass 


36 


ADONIEAM  JUDSON 


from  the  protection  of  tlie  British  flag  into  the  powei  of 
the  Burmau  despot,  whose  tender  mercies  were  cruel. 
But  their  only  alternative  was  between  Rangoon  and 
their  native  land,  and  they  chose  the  former. 

On  June  22d,  the  went  on  board  the  crazy,  old  vessel 
"  Georgiana."  The  captain  was  the  only  person  on 
board  who  could  speak  their  language,  and  they  had  no 
other  apartment  than  that  made  by  canvas.  The  passage 
was  very  tedious.  Mrs.  Judson  was  taken  dangerously 
ill,  and  continued  so  until  at  one  period  her  husband 
came  to  experience  the  awful  sensation  which  necessarily 
resulted  from  the  expectation  of  an  immediate  separation 
from  his  beloved  wife,  the  only  remaining  companion  of 
bis  wanderings.  About  the  same  time,  the  captain  being 
unable  to  make  the  Nicobar  Island,  where  it  was  intended 
to  take  in  a  cargo  of  cocoauuts,  they  were  driven  into  a 
dangerous  strait,  between  the  Little  and  Great  x\ndamans, 
two  savage  coasts  where  the  captain  had  never  been,  and 
where,  if  they  had  been  cast  ashore  they  would,  according 
to  all  accounts,  have  been  killed  and  eaten  by  the  natives. 
But  as  one  evil  is  sometimes  an  antidote  to  another,  so  it 
happened  with  them.  Their  being  driven  into  this  dan- 
gerous but  quiet  channel  brought  immediate  relief  to  the 
almost  exhausted  frame  of  Mrs.  Judson,  and  conduced 
essentially  to  her  recovery.  And  in  the  event,  they  were 
safely  conducted  over  the  black  rocks  which  they  some- 
times saw  in  the  gulf  below,  and  on  the  eastern  side  of 
the  islands  found  favorable  winds,  which  gently  wafted 
them  forward  to  Rangoon.  But  on  arriving  there,  other 
trials  awaited  them. 

They  bad  never  before  seen  a  place  where  European 
influence  had  not  contributed  to  smooth  and  soften  the 
rough,  native  features.    The  prospect  of  Rangoon,  as 


VOYAGE  TO  BURMA 


37 


they  approached,  was  quite  disheartening.  Mr.  Judson 
went  ou  shore  just  at  night  to  take  a  view  of  the  place 
and  the  mission  house ;  but  so  dark  and  cheerless  and 
unpromising  did  all  things  appear  that  the  evening  of 
that  day,  after  his  return  to  the  ship,  he  and  his  wife 
marked* as  the  most  gloomy  and  distressing  that  they  ever 
passed. 

However,  on  July  13th,  they  reached  Rangoon,  and 
took  possession  of  the  English  Baptist  mission  bouse, 
occupied  by  a  son  of  Dr.  Carey.  This  young  man  was 
temporarily  absent,  and  soon  afterward  resigned  the  mis- 
sion in  their  favor,  and  entered  the  service  of  the  Burmese 
Government. 

When  the  tidings  reached  America  that  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Judson  and  Mr.  Rice,  Congregational  missionaries  sent 
out  by  the  American  Board,  had  been  baptized  at  Cal- 
cutta, the  Baptists  throughout  the  whole  land  were  filled 
with  glad  surprise.  God  had  suddenly  placed  at  the  dis- 
posal of  the  Baptist  denomination  three  fully  equipped 
missionaries.  Thev  were  already  in  the  field,  and  action 
must  be  prompt.  Several  influential  ministers  in  Massa- 
chusetts met  at  the  house  of  Dr.  Baldwin,  in  Boston,  and 
organized  the  "Baptist  Society  for  Propagating  the 
Gospel  in  India  and  other  Foreign  Parts."  They  also, 
■  as  well  as  the  American  Board,  first  turned  instinctively 
toward  England  for  counsel  and  help.  They  pro- 
posed to  the  Baptist  Missionary  Society  in  London  that 
Mr.  Judson  should  be  associated  with  Messrs.  Carey, 
Marshman,  and  Ward,  at  Serainpore  ;  and  that  the  Bap- 
tists in  England  and  America  should  co-operate  in  the 
work  of  foreign  missions.  This,  however,  did  not  seem 
wise  to  the  English  brethren,  and  so  America  was  again 
thrown  back  upon  her  own  resources. 


38 


ADONIEAM  JUDSON 


Mr.  Rice,  upon  his  return  to  this  country,  traveled 
everywhere,  telling  the  thrilling  story  of  the  experiences 
of  these  pioneer  missionaries.  The  greatest  enthusiasm 
was  aroused,  and  missionary  societies  similar  to  the  one 
in  Boston  sprang  up  in  the  Middle  and  Southern  States. 
In  order  to  secure  concert  of  action  it  seemed  b^st  that 
there  should  be  a  general  convention,  in  which  all  these 
societies  might  be  represented.  Accordingly,  on  the  18th 
of  May,  1814,  delegates  from  Baptist  churches  and  mis- 
sionary societies  throughout  the  land  convened  in  the 
First  Baptist  Church  of  Philadelphia.  These  delegates 
organized  a  body  which  was  styled,  "  The  General  Mis- 
sionary Convention  of  the  Baptist  Denomination  in  the 
United  States  of  America  for  Foreign  Missions."  The 
sum  of  four  thousand  dollars  was  put  into  the  treasury, 
contributed  by  the  local  societies,  and  it  was  thought  an 
annual  income  of  five  thousand  two  hundred  and  eighty 
dollars  might  be  secured.  It  was  the  day  of  small  things. 
In  1845,  the  Southern  brethren  withdrew  to  form  a  so- 
ciety of  their  own,  called  "  The  Southern  Convention." 
The  Northern  organization  adopted  a  new  constitution, 
*  and  assumed  the  name  of  "  The  American  Baptist  Mis- 
sionary Union."  Its  receipts  for  1893  were  over  half  a 
million  dollars. 

Although  Mr.  Judson's  change  in  denominational' 
attitude  occasioned  considerable  irritation  at  the  time, 
yet  good  and  wise  men  of  all  religious  bodies,  viewing  his 
conduct  from  the  standpoint  of  the  present,  are  agreed  that 
it  proved  a  blessing  to  the  Christian  world  at  large.  It 
occasioned  the  formation  of  a  second  missionary  society. 
There  came  to  be  two  great  benevolent  forces  at  work, 
where  there  was  only  one  before.  What  a  history- 
making  epoch  that  was !   The  action  of  those  consecrated 


VOYAGE  TO  BURMA 


39 


students  at  Andover  led  to  the  formation  of  The  Ameri- 
can Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign  Missions  and  of 
The  American  Baptist  Missionary  Union ;  the  one  the 
organ  of  the  Congregationalists,  the  other  of  the  Baptists 
of  America.  A  water-shed  was  upheaved,  from  which 
two  beneficent  and  ever-widening  streams  flowed  forth 
•  for  the  healing  of  the  nations. 

Mr.  Judson's  life  also  marks  the  beginning  of  that 
wonderful  growth  which  has  characterized  the  Baptist 
denomination  in  this  country,  for  in  gathering  together 
and  rallying  for  his  support  the  Baptists  awoke  to  self- 
consciousness.  They  arrived  at  the  epoch,  so  momentous 
in  the  life  either  of  a  society  or  of  an  individual,  when 
the  infant  passes  out  of  a  mere  sort  of  vegetable  ex- 
istence into  a  consciousness  of  his  being  and  power. 

In  the  history  of  a  social  body,  as  well  as  of  the  human 
infant,  the  period  of  self-consciousness  is  the  beginning 
of  all  real  power.  In  1812,  the  Baptists  of  America 
were  a  scattered  and  feeble  folk,  and  lacked  solidarity. 
There  was  little  or  no  denominational  spirit.  The  sum- 
mons to  the  foreign  field  shook  them  together.  A  glass 
of  water  may  be  slowly  reduced  in  temperature  even  to  a 
point  one  or  two  degrees  below  freezing,  and  yet  remain 
uncongealed,  provided  it  be  kept  perfectly  motionless; 
if  then  it  is  slightly  jarred,  it  will  suddenly  turn  into  ice. 
The  Baptist  denomination  of  America  was  in  just  such  a 
state  of  suspense.  It  needed  to  be  jarred  and  shaken  into 
solid  and  enduring  form.  Mr.  Judson's  words :  '^Should 
there  he  formed  a  Baptist  sociefy  for  the  support  of  a  mis- 
sion in  these  parts,  I  should  be  ready  to  consider  viyself 
their  missionary,'"  proved  to  be  the  crystallizing  touch. 


CHAPTER  IV 


BURMA  AND  BUDDHISM 

BURMA  is  traversed  by  three  parallel  rivers  that  flow 
southward :  the  Irawadi,  the  Sittang,  and  the 
Salwen.  By  far  the  largest  of  these  is  the  Irawadi, 
which  is  navigable  by  steamers  to  Bhamo,  eight  hundred 
and  forty  miles  from  the  mouth.  The  country  is  "made 
up  of  these  three  parallel  river  valleys,  and  the  mountain 
chains  which  flank  them.  The  land  in  Asia  gradually 
slopes  from  the  Himalayas  southward  toward  the  bay  of 
Bengal.  Starting  at  the  south  and  moving  northward,  the 
traveler  finds  first  broad  paddy  fields,  submerged  during  a 
part  of  the  year  by  the  network  of  streams  through  which 
the  Irawadi  finds  its  way  to  the  sea  ;  then  he  traverses  up- 
land plains  ;  then  a  rolling  country,  with  ranges  of  hills ; 
and  finally  deep  forests,  high  mountains,  and  the  mag- 
nificent defiles  through  which  the  rivers  flow. 

The  southern  part  of  Burma,  like  Egypt,  owes  its  fer- 
tility to  an  annual  inundation  which  is  thus  described  by 
an  English  officer :  ^ 

"  With  the  exception  of  high  knolls  standing  up  here 
and  there,  and  a  strip  of  high  ground  at  the  base  of  the 
hills,  the  whole  country,  fields,  roads,  bridges,  is  under 
water  from  one  to  twelve  feet  or  more  in  depth.  Boats 
are  the  only  means  of  locomotion  for  even  a  few  yards. 
You  sail  across  the  country,  ploughing  through  the  half- 

1  See  Forbes'  "  British  Burma." 
40 


BURMA  AND  BUDDHISM 


41 


submerged  long  grass,  piloting  a  way  through  the  clumps 
of  brushwood  aud  small  trees,  into  the  streets  of  large 
agricultural  villages,  where  the  cattle  are  seen  stabled 
high  up  in  the  houses,  twelve  feet  from  the  ground  ;  the 
children  are  catching  fish  with  lines  through  the  floor ; 
the  people  are  going  about  their  daily  concerns,  if  it  is 
only  to  borrow  a  cheroot  from  their  next  door  neighbor, 
in  canoes ;  in  short,  all  the  miseries  and  laughable  con- 
tretemps sometimes  pictured  in  the  illustrated  papers  as 
caused  by  floods  in  Europe,  may  be  seen — with  this  diifer- 
ence,  that  every  one  is  so  accustomed  to  them  that  they 
never  create  a  thought  of  surprise." 

The  northern  part  of  Burma  abounds  in  mountain 
streams  of  exquisite  beauty.  An  eyewitness  describes 
them  in  flowing  terms,  as  follows  :  ^ 

In  some  places  they  are  seen  leaping  in  cascades  over 
precipices  from  fifty  to  one  hundred  feet  high ;  in  others, 
spreading  out  into  deep,  quiet  lakes.  In  some  places  they 
run  purling  over  pebbles  of  milk-white  quartz,  or  grass- 
green  prase,  or  yellow  jasper,  or  sky-blue  slate,  or  varie- 
gated porphyry  ;  in  others,  they  glide  like  arrows  over 
rounded  masses  of  granite,  or  smooth,  angular  pieces  of 
green  stone.  In  some  places  nought  can  be  heard  but 
the  stunning  sounds  of  *  deep  calling  unto  deep ' ;  in 
others,  the  mind  is  led  to  musing  by  the  quiet  murmur  of 
the  brook,  that  falls  on  the  ear  like  distant  music.  The 
traveler's  path  often  leads  him  up  the  middle  of  one  of 
these  streams,  and  every  turn,  like  that  of  a  kaleidoscope, 
reveals  something  new  aud  pleasing  to  the  eye.  Here  a 
daisy-like  flower  nods  over  the  mai'gin,  as  if  to  look  at 
her  modest  face  in  the  reflecting  waters ;  there  the  lotus- 
leafed,  wild  arum  stands  knee-deep  in  water,  shaking 

1  See  Masoa'a  "  The  Natural  Productions  of  Burma." 


42 


ADONIEAM  JUDSON 


around  with  the  motion  of  the  stream  the  dewdrops  on 
its  peltate  bosom  like  drops  of  glittering  quicksilver. 
Here  the  fantastic  roots  of  a  willow,  spi'inkled  with  its 
woolly  capsules,  come  down  to  the  water's  edge,  or  it  may 
be  a  eugenia  tree,  with  its  fragrant  white  corymbs,  or  a 
water  dillenia,  with  its  brick-red,  scaly  trunk,  and  green, 
apple-like  fruit,  occupies  its  place ;  there  the  long,  droop- 
ing red  tassels  of  the  barringtonia  hang  far  over  the 
bank,  dropping  its  blossoms  on  the  water,  food  for  numer- 
ous members  of  the  carp  family  congregated  below." 

The  domestic  animals  of  Burma  are  the  ox,  buffalo, 
horse,  and  the  goat.  The  horses  are  small,  and  are  used 
for  riding,  never  as  beasts  of  burden.  The  dog  is  not  kept 
as  a  pet  or  for  hunting ;  but,  as  in  other  Oriental  coun- 
tries, roams  about  the  cities  in  a  half-wild  condition, 
devouring  offal,  and  at  last  becomes  the  victim  of  famine 
and  disease.  The  jungles  swarm  with  wild  animals,  the 
monkey,  elephant,  rhinoceros,  tiger,  leopard,  deer,  and 
wild-cat.  The  elephants  are  caught,  tamed,  and  used  for 
riding.  The  white  elephant,  or  albino,  is  especially 
prized.  A  specimen  is  always  kept  at  court  as  the  in- 
signia of  royalty,  one  of  the  king's  titles  being,  "  Lord 
of  the  White  Elephant." 

Venomous  and  offensive  reptiles  and  insects  abound. 
While  you  are  eating  your  dinner  the  lizard  may  drop 
from  the  bamboo  rafters  upon  the  table.  As  you  step 
out  of  your  door  the  gleaming  forms  of  chameleons  shoot 
up  the  trunk  of  your  roof-tree  and  hide  themselves  in  the 
branches.  The  scorpion,  with  its  painful  sting,  and  the 
centipede,  with  its  poisonous  bite,  may  be  found  in  your 
garden.  The  children  must  be  warned  not  to  race  through 
the  bushes  in  your  compound,  lest  they  encounter  the 
hated  cobra,  whose  slightest  nip  is  sure  and  speedy  death. 


BURMA  AND  BUDDHISM 


The  author  remembers  his  father  taking  the  Burman 
spear,  the  only  weapon  which  he  ever  used,  and  coming 
down  into  the  poultry-yard  to  dispatch  a  cobra,  whose 
track  had  been  discovered  in  the  dust  beneath  the  house. 
How  mucJi  discomfort  and  suffering  are  caused  even  in 
our  own  land  by  rats,  mice,  snakes,  flies,  and  mosquitoes ! 
And  the  foreign  missionary  has  these  same  pests,  but  in  a 
more  aggravated  form.  These  are  larger,  more  numerous, 
and  in  addition  to  them  he  has  to  cope  with  the  white 
ants,  that  in  armies  destroy  his  furniture,  the  scorpion, 
the  centipede,  the  cobra,  the  tiger. 

The  inhabitants  of  Burma  belong  to  the  Mongolian 
race,  the  characteristics  of  which  are  "  long,  straight 
hair ;  almost  complete  absence  of  beard ;  a  dark-colored 
skin  varying  from  a  leather-like  yellow  to  a  deep  brown, 
or  sometimes  tending  to  red  ;  and  prominent  cheek-bones, 
generally  accompanied  by  an  oblique  setting  of  the  eyes." 
They  are  described  by  a  modern  writer^  as  "  of  a  stout, 
active,  well-proportioned  form ;  of  a  brown,  but  never 
of  an  intensely  dark  complexion,  with  black,  coarse,  and 
abundant  hair,  and  a  little  more  beard  than  is  possessed 
by  the  Siamese." 

At  the  time  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Judson's  arrival,  the 
population  numbered  from  six  to  eight  millions.  This 
included,  however,  not  only  Burmans,  who  are  the  ruling 
race,  and  dwell  mainly  in  the  larger  towns  aud  cities,  but 
also  several  subject  races — Shans,  Karens,  Ka-khy-ens, 
half-wild  people,  who  live  in  villages  scattered  through 
the  jungles  and  along  the  mountain  streams.  These 
tribes  have  different  habits,  and  speak  a  different  lan- 
guage from  that  of  the  Burmans.  They  are  related 
to  the  Burmans  somewhat  as  the  North  American  Indians 


I  M^jor  Yule,  in  his  "  Embassf  to  Ava." 


44 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


are  to  us,  being  perhaps  the  original  inhabitants  of  the 
country,  and  having  been  subjugated  at  some  remoti* 
period  of  the  past.  It  would  seem  that  wave  after  wave 
of  Mongolian  conquerors  had  swept  over  the  country 
from  the  North,  and  these  tribes  are  the  fragments  of 
■wrecked  races. 

Major  Yule  gives  the  following  graphic  desci-iption  of 
the  mental  and  moral  traits  of  the  Burmese : 

"  Unlike  the  generality  of  the  Asiatics,  they  are  not  a 
fawning  race.  They  are  cheerful,  and  singularly  alive  to 
the  ridiculous  ;  buoyant,  elastic,  soon  recovering  Irom 
personal  or  domestic  disaster.  With  little  feeling  of 
patriotism  they  are  still  attached  to  their  homes,  greatly 
so  to  their  families.  Free  from  prejudices  of  caste  or 
creed,  they  readily  fraternize  with  strangers,  and  at  all 
times  frankly  yield  to  the  superiority  of  a  European. 
Though  ignorant  they  are,  when  no  mental  exertion  is 
required,  inquisitive,  and  to  a  certain  extent  eager  for 
information ;  indifferent  to  the  shedding  of  blood  on  the 
part  of  their  rulers,  yet  not  individually  cruel  ;  temper- 
ate, abstemious,  and  hardy,  but  idle,  with  neitlier  fixed- 
ness of  purpose,  nor  perseverance.  Discipline,  or  any 
continued  employment,  becomes  most  irksome  to  them, 
yet  they  are  not  devoid  of  a  certain  degree  of  enterprise. 
Great  dabblers  in  all  mercantile  ventures,  they  may  be 
called  (the  women  especially)  a  race  of  hucksters ;  not 
treacherous  or  habitual  perverters  of  the  truth,  yet  credu- 
lous and  given  to  monstrous  exaggerations;  when  vested 
with  authority,  arrogant  and  boastful ;  if  unchecked, 
corrupt,  oppressive,  and  arbitrary ;  distinguished  for 
bravery,  whilst  their  chiefs  are  notorious  for  cowardice ; 
indifferent  shots,  and  though  living  in  a  country  abound- 
ing in  forest,  not  bold  followers  of  field  sports." 


BURMA  AND  BUDDHISM 


45 


The  soil  of  Burma  is  riciily  productive  of  all  that  is 
needed  for  food,  or  clothing,  or  shelter,  or  ornament. 
The  chief  crops  are  rice,  maize  (or  Indian  corn),  wheat, 
tobacco,  cotton,  and  indigo.  It  is  computed  that  eighty 
per  cent,  of  all  the  rice  brought  from  the  East  to  Europe 
is  produced  in  the  rich  paddy-fields  of  British  Burma. 
There  is  an  abundance  of  delicious  fruits — the  jack- 
fruit,  the  bread  fruit,  oranges,  bananas,  guavas,  pine- 
apples, and  the  cocoanut.  After  the  annual  inundation, 
the  subsiding  rivers  leave  behind  them  in  the  depression 
of  the  ground  ponds  well  stocked  with  fish.  Beef  and 
mutton  the  Burman  learns  to  forego,  as  his  religion  does 
not  allow  him  to  eat  cattle  or  sheep  unless  they  die  a 
natural  death.  His  meal  of  rice  and  curry  is  sometimes 
enriched  by  the  addition  of  poultry.  The  bamboo  yields 
building  material  for  his  houses,  and  the  teak  forest 
timber  for  his  ships.  The  mineral  resources  are  large. 
The  earth  yields  iron,  tin,  silver,  gold,  sapphires,  emer- 
alds, rubies,  amber,  sulphur,  arsenic,  antimony,  coal  (both 
anthracite  and  bituminous),  and  petroleum,  which  is  used 
by  all  classes  in  little  clay  lamps. 

Yet  at  the  time  of  the  arrival  of  our  missionaries 
there  was  no  commerce  on  a  large  scale.  This  is  shown 
by  the  high  rate  of  interest,  twenty-five  per  cent. ;  and 
sixty  per  cent.,  when  no  security  was  given.  The  very 
productiveness  of  his  country  made  the  Burman  of  fifty 
years  ago  feel  independent  of  foreign  nations.  He  took 
the  narrow  view  that  exportation  only  tended  to  impover- 
ishment. The  government  rigidly  prohibited  all  import- 
ant exportation  except  that  of  the  cheap  and  abundant 
teak  timber.  Gold  and  silver  and  precious  stones  must 
not  be  carried  out  for  fear  of  reducing  the  country  to 
poverty.    If  in  those  days  an  English  merchant  had 


46 


ADONIEAM  JUDSON 


carried  a  large  quantity  of  silks  and  calicoes  to  the  royal 
city,  and  had  exchanged  them  for  five  thousand  dollars 
in  gold,  he  could  possess  and  enjoy  the  money  there,  but 
he  could  not,  except  by  bribery,  succeed  in  carrying  it 
home.  His  wealth  made  him  practically  an  exile  and  a 
prisoner.  The  marble  could  not  be  exported,  because  it 
was  consecrated  to  the  building  of  idols  and  pagodas. 
The  C(Jtton  and  the  rice  could  not  be  exported,  lest  there 
should  not  be  enough  left  for  the  clothing  and  food  of 
the  population.  The  only  commerce  worth  mentioning 
was  with  China.  The  Chinese  caravans  brouglit  overland 
large  quantities  of  silk,  and  received  cotton  in  exchange. 

On  account  of  the  low  state  of  commerce,  the  science 
of  navigation  was  quite  unknown  to  the  Burmans. 
When  sailors  made  their  little  trips  in  the  dry  season 
along  the  shores  of  the  bay  of  Bengal,  they  took  pains 
never  to  pass  out  of  sight  of  laud. 

There  were  no  extensive  manufactures  in  Burma,  for 
these  required  an  accumulation  of  large  capital ;  and  a 
man  could  never  be  sure  that  his  wealth  would  not  be 
wrested  from  him  by  the  government.  And  so  the  chief 
article  of  manufacture  was  lacquer  ware,  as  this  requires 
but  little  capital.  Woven  strips  of  bamboo  were  smeared 
with  mud,  and  baked,  polished,  and  varnished,  were  then 
manufactured  into  beautiful  boxes  and  trays. 

Most  of  the  Burmans,  however,  are  engaged  in  agri- 
cultural pursuits.  They  raise  rice  and  catch  fish,  which 
they  pound  up  into  a  mass  with  coarse  salt,  and  so  pro- 
duce their  favorite  relish,  ngapee.  Immense  quantities 
of  rice  and  ngapee  are  carried  up  the  Irawadi  in  boats, 
and  are  sold  at  the  capital  and  in  the  upper  provinces 
of  Burma. 

The  government  of  Independent  Burma  was  an  abso- 


BURMA  AND  BUDDHISM 


47 


lute  despotism,  now  wholly  set  aside  by  the  English 
conquest.  The  king  had  supreme  power  over  the  life 
and  possessions  of  every  subject.  He  could  confiscate 
property,  imprison,  torture,  or  execute  at  his  pleas- 
ure— his  only  restraint  being  fear  of  an  insurrection. 
An  English  writer  relates  that  at  the  sovereign's  com- 
mand one  of  the  highest  officers  of  the  State  was  seized 
by  the  public  executioner  and  stretched  on  the  ground 
by  the  side  of  the  road  under  a  scorching  sun,  with  a 
heavy  weight  upon  his  chest,  and  afterward  restored  to 
bis  high  position.  There  were  indeed  two  councils  of 
State,  by  which  the  government  was  administered,  but 
the  members  of  these  councib  were  appointed  by  the 
king,  and  could  be  degraded  or  executed  at  his  word. 
The  father  of  the  last  monarch  of  Burma  saw  the  evils 
of  this  despotic  system,  and,  in  arranging  for  the  succes- 
sion, formed  a  plan  by  which  his  successor  should  be  sub- 
ject to  limitation  by  his  prime  ministers.  But  the  new 
king,  Thebaw,  a  brutal  and  licentious  boy  of  twenty, 
frustrated  this  benignant  purpose.  He  murdei*ed  his 
counsellors,  massacred  his  blood  relations,  and  Burma 
that  had  !Poused  herself  for  a  moment  from  her  long 
nightmare  of  despotism  sank  again  into  sleep. 

The  whole  country  was  divided  into  provinces,  town- 
ships, districts,  and  villages.  Over  each  province  was  a 
governor,  or  as  the  Burmese  call  him,  an  Eater. 
Through  his  underlings  he  taxed  every  family.  His  offi- 
cers received  a  share  of  what  they  could  extort,  and  the 
rest  was  divided  with  the  king.  In  this  way  the  whole 
land  was  a  scene  of  enormous  extortion.  There  were  no 
fixed  salaries  for  government  functionaries.  The  higher 
officer  ate  a  certain  province  or  district.  The  lower 
lived  on  fees  and  perquisites.    Courts  of  law  were  cor- 


48 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


rupted  by  bribery.  It  was  customary  to  torture  wit- 
nesses. The  criminal  was  usually  executed  by  decapi- 
tation. He  might,  however,  be  disembowelled,  or  thrown 
to  wild  beasts,  or  crucified,  or  have  his  limbs  broken  with 
a  bludgeon — if  he  could  not  elFect  his  escape  by  the 
plentiful  use  of  money.  Who  can  estimate  the  miseries 
which  the  peasantry  must  have  sulfered  under  such  a  sys- 
tem of  bribery  and  extortion  ?  It  is  not  strange  that  one 
of  the  Burman  monarcbs,  when  he  came  to  the  throne, 
uttered  the  exclamation,  "  Great  God,  I  might  as  well  be 
king  over  a  desert !  " 

The  religion  of  Burma  is  Buddhism.  Here,  and  in 
the  island  of  Ceylon,  this  cult  exists  in  its  purest  form. 
Buddhism  as  is  known  originated  in  India  about  five  hun- 
dred years  before  Christ.  Here  it  succeeded  in  supplant- 
ing the  ancient  religion  of  the  Hindus,  derived  from  the 
Vedas,  and  called  Brahmiuism. 

India  was  in  former  times  saturated  with  Brahminical 
philosophy  and  Brahminical  ceremonial.  The  people 
were  completely  priest-ridden.  Buddhism  was  an  out- 
growth from  Brahmiuism,  or  perhaps  rather  a  recoil 
from  it.  It  was  related  to  it  somewhat  as  Christianity  is 
to  Judaism,  or  Protestantism  to  the  Romish  Church. 
For  one  hundred  and  fifty  years  Buddhism  had  a  very 
rapid  and  vigorous  growth  in  India,  but  soon  after  the 
beginning  of  the  Christian  era  it  began  to  decay,  and  in 
the  eighth  and  ninth  centuries  A.  d.,  in  consequence  of 
a  great  persecution,  Buddhism  was  completely  extirpated 
in  India.  The  ancient  religion,  Biahminism,  was  reiii- 
stated,  and  Gautama  has  comparatively  few  worshipers 
in  the  land  of  his  birth.  But  a  prophet  is  not  without 
honor  save  in  his  own  country.  Buddhism  is  pervaded 
by  a  missionary  spirit,  and  lias  won  its  way  by  peaceful 


BURMA  AND  BUDDHISM 


49 


persuasion  into  Ceylon,  Burma,  Siam,  Thibet,  and  China. 
It  is  at  the  present  day  the  religion  of  more  than  four 
hundred  millions  of  human  beings — about  one-third  of 
the  population  of  the  globe. 

Buddhism,  like  Brahminism,  holds  the  doctrine  of 
transmigration  of  souls.  The  soul  is  at  first  united  with 
the  lowest  forms  of  organic  life.  By  successive  births  it 
may  climb  into  the  bodies  of  spiders,  snakes,  chameleons, 
and  after  long  ages  may  reach  the  human  tenement. 
Then  comes  the  period  of  probation.  According  to  its 
behavior  in  the  flesh  it  either  rises  still  higher  to  occupy 
the  glorious  forms  of  demigods  and  gods,  or  it  relapses 
little  by  little  into  its  lowest  state,  and  again  takes  up 
its  wretched  abode  in  the  degraded  forms  of  the  lower 
animals. 

Life  runs  its  rounds  of  living,  climbing  up 
From  mote  and  gnat  and  worm,  reptile  and  fish, 
Bird  and  shagged  beast,  man,  demon,  deva,  God, 
To  clod  and  mote  again.  ^ 

"  He  who  is  now  the  most  degraded  of  the  demons  may 
one  day  rule  the  highest  of  the  heavens  ;  he  who  is  at 
present  seated  on  the  most  honorable  of  the  celestial 
thrones,  may  one  day  writhe  amidst  all  the  agonies  of  a 
place  of  torment ;  and  the  worm  that  we  crush  under  our 
feet  may  in  the  course  of  ages  become  a  supreme 
Buddha." ' 

Eternal  process  moving  on. 
From  state  to  state  the  spirit  walks, 
And  tliese  are  but  the  shattered  stalks 

And  ruined  chrysalis  of  one.' 


^  "  The  Light  of  Asia,"  by  Edwin  Arnold. 
*  Hard  wick's  "  Christ  and  other  Mastera," 
'  Tennyson's  "  In  Jlemoriam." 

D 


50 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


This  belief  pervades  the  every-day  thinking  of  the  mos: 
ignoraui  Burmese.  An  English  officer  writes,  that  "just 
before  the  drop  fell  with  a  wretched  murderer,  he  himself 
heard  him  mutter  as  his  last  word,  'May  my  next  exist- 
ence be  a  man's,  and  a  long  one ! ' "  An  old  woman, 
whose  grown-up  son  had  died,  thought  that  she  recognized 
that  son's  voice  in  the  bleating  of  a  neighbor's  calf  She 
threw  her  arms  about  the  animal,  and  purchasing  it, 
cherished  it  until  its  death  as  the  living  embodiment  of 
her  own  child. 

Faith  in  transmigration  accounts  for  the  pious  Bud- 
dhist's treatment  of  the  lower  animals.  The  priests  strain 
the  gnats  out  of  the  water  they  drink.  "  They  do  not  eat 
after  noon,  nor  drink  after  dark,  for  fear  of  swallowing 
minute  insects,  and  they  carry  a  brush  on  all  occasions, 
with  which  they  carefully  sweep  every  place  befoi'e  they 
sit  down,  lest  they  should  inadvertently  crush  any  living 
creature."  Mr.  Huxley  tells  us  that  a  Hindu's  peace  of 
mind  was  completely  destroyed  by  a  microscopist  who 
showed  him  the  animals  in  a  drop  of  water.  The  Bud- 
dhists often  build  hospitals  for  sick  brutes.  Perhaps  this 
deep-seated  and  hereditary  faith  in  transmigration  may 
account  for  the  singular  apathy  of  the  natives  to  the  des- 
truction of  life  caused  by  snakes  and  tigers.  In  fact,  one 
of  their  legends  represents  the  founder  of  their  religion 
as  sacrificing  his  life-blood  to  slake  the  parched  thirst  of 
a  starving  tigress. 

Although  Brahminism  and  Buddhism  both  agree  in 
teaching  transmigration,  they  differ  widely  in  their  views 
of  God  and  of  the  soul.  Brahminism  is  pantheistic ; 
Buddhism  atheistic.  According  to  Brahminism,  matter 
has  no  real  existence.  All  physical  forms  are  the  merest 
illusions.    The  only  real  existences  are  souls.    These  are 


BURMA  AND  BUDDHISM 


51 


all  parts  of  a  great  divine  soul  from  which  they  emanate 
and  into  which  they  will  at  last  be  reabsorbed,  as  when  a 
flask  of  water  is  broken  in  the  ocean.  Buddhism  denies 
the  existence  not  only  of  matter,  but  of  the  soul  and  of 
God.  It  is  a  system  of  universal  negation.  There  is  no 
trace  in  it  of  a  supreme  being.  All  is  mere  seeming. 
Nothing  is  real  in  past,  present,  or  future. 

Again,  Brahminism  betrays  a  deep  consciousness  of  sin. 
It  teaches  the  necessity  of  doing  painful  penance  and  of 
offering  animal  sacrifices.  Buddhism  regards  sin  as  cos- 
mical.  There  is  no  such  thing  as  blame  or  guilt.  There 
is  no  mediation  or  pardon.  The  Buddhist  brings  no 
animal  to  the  altar.  His  worship  consists  in  offering  up 
prayers,  and  perfumes,  and  flowers,  in  memory  of  the 
founder  of  his  religion. 

Again,  Brahminism  is  aristocratic ;  Buddhism  demo- 
cratic. Brahminism  is  the  religion  of  caste.  It  divides 
the  nation  into  four  classes :  the  priest,  the  warrior,  the 
tradesman,  and  the  serf.  Besides  these,  but  lowest  of  all, 
are  pariahs,  or  outcastes — the  offspring  of  intercourse 
that  violated  the  law  of  caste.  There  can  be  no  social 
mingling  of  the  castes.  The  condition  of  the  serfs  is 
most  wretched  and  humiliating.  The  laws  of  Manu 
ordain  that  their  abode  must  be  outside  the  towns,  their 
property  must  be  restricted  to  dogs  and  asses,  their  clothes 
should  be  those  left  by  the  dead,  their  ornaments  rusty 
iron  ;  they  must  roam  from  place  to  place ;  no  respectable 
person  must  hold  intercourse  with  them ;  they  are  to  aid 
as  public  executioners,  retaining  the  clothes  of  the  dead. 

Now  Buddhism  rejected  the  system  of  caste.  Gautama 
taught :  "The  priest  is  born  of  a  woman;  so  is  the  out- 
caste.  My  law  is  a  law  of  grace  for  all.  My  doctrine  is 
like  the  sky.    There  is  room  for  all  without  exception, 


52 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


men,  women,  boys,  girls,  poor,  and  rich."     The  two 

beautiful  stories  that  follow  remind  us  of  the  spirit  and 
behavior  of  our  own  blessed  Lord. 

Amanda,  an  eminent  disciple  of  Gautama,  meets  an 
outcaste  girl  drawing  water  at  a  well.  He  asks  for  a 
draught.  She  hesitates,  fearing  she  may  contaminate 
him  by  her  touch.  He  says,  "  My  sister,  I  do  not  ask 
what  is  thy  caste,  or  thy  descent ;  I  beg  for  water ;  if 
thou  canst,  give  it  me."  Also,  a  poor  man  filled  Gau- 
tama's alms-bowl  with  a  handful  of  flowers,  while  ten 
thousand  bushels  of  rice  from  the  rich  failed. 

The  founder  of  Buddhism  is  called  Gautama  Siddar- 
tha,  or  Buddha.  Gautama  was  the  name  of  his  family, 
Siddartlia  his  own  individual  name,  and  Buddha,  "the 
enliglitcued  one,"  the  surname  he  acquired  by  his  wisdom. 
He  was  born  about  the  year  500  b.  c,  at  Kapilavastu,  a 
few  days'  journey  from  Benares,  near  the  base  of  the 
Himalayas.  His  father  was  an  Indian  prince,  and  ruled 
over  a  tribe  called  the  Sakyas.  Buddha  is  described  as 
of  a  gentle,  ardent,  pensive,  philanthropic  nature.  He 
was  reared  in  the  lap  of  Oriental  luxury,  but  his  earnest 
nature  became  weary  with  pleasure.  Intimations  of  the 
wretchedness  of  the  peasantry  of  India  penetrated  even 
the  palace  walls.  The  winds  sweeping  over  the  ^olian 
harp  whispered  the  miseries  of  mankind. 

We  are  the  voices  of  the  wandering  wind, 
Which  moan  for  rest,  and  rest  can  never  find; 
Lo !  as  the  wind  is,  so  is  mortal  life, 
A  moan,  a  sigh,  a  soh,  a  storm,  a  strife. 

O  Maya's  son  !  because  we  roam  the  earth, 
Moan  we  upon  these  strings;  we  make  no  mirth 
So  many  woes  we  see  in  many  lands, 
So  many  streaming  eyes,  and  wringing  hands.' 

1  "The  Light  of  Asia." 


BURMA  AND  BUDDHISM 


53 


The  desire  to  be  a  saviour  takes  possession  of  his 
breast.  Four  ominous  sights  contribute  to  fix  his  pur 
pose.  He  sees  in  his  pleasure  grounds  an  old  man, 
broken  and  decrepit ;  again,  he  meets  a  man  smitten  with 
a  malignant  disease ;  again,  his  eye  rests  upon  a  corpse. 
He  learns  that  such  are  the  destinies  of  himself  and  of 
all  his  fellow-beings.  At  last  he  sees  a  mendicant  monk 
passing  by  with  his  alms-bowl.  The  young  prince 
resolves  to  leave  his  father,  his  wealth,  his  power,  his 
wife,  his  child,  and  become  a  homeless  wanderer,  that  he 
may  search  out  the  way  of  salvation  for  himself  and  his 
fellow-men.  He  first  becomes  a  Brahminical  ascetic,  and 
gives  himself  over  to  the  severest  penance  and  self- 
torture.  Afterward  he  abandons  this  altogether,  and  at 
last,  while  in  profoundest  meditation  under  the  bo-tree, 
discovers  the  way  of  life.  He  spends  his  remaining  days 
in  traveling  through  India  preaching  his  gospel,  and  gain- 
ing many  disciples.  He  lives  to  be  an  old  man,  and  at 
last  dies  with  the  words  on  his  lips  :  "  Nothing  is  durable !  " 

But  one  eagerly  inquires,  What  was  the  ivay  of  salva- 
tion that  Buddha  discovered  under  the  bo-tree,  and  spent 
half  a  century  of  his  life  in  preaching  ?  Observe  suc- 
cessively the  point  of  departure,  the  goal,  and-  the  icay. 

Buddha  starts  out  with  the  idea  that  misery  is  the 
indispensable  accompaniment  of  existence — sorrow  is 
shadow  to  life.  The  foundation  of  his  philosophy  rests  in 
the  densest  pessimism.  While  we  are  bound  up  in  this 
material  world,  we  are  a  prey  to  disappointment,  disease, 
old  age,  death.  We  find  ourselves  "  caught  in  the  com- 
mon net  of  death  and  woe,  and  life  which  binds  lo  both." 
There  is  no  way  out  of  the  vast  and  monotonous  cycle  of 
transmigration  except  into  Nirvana — the  blowing  out— 
that  is,  total  extinction. 


54 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


The  biehest  coal  therefore,  to  which  we  can  attain  is 
utter  annihilation.  That  this  is  the  meaning  of  Nirvana 
or  Nighan,  seems  established  beyond  a  doubt.  The  most 
eminent  authorities  on  Buddhism,  Barthelemy  St.  Hilaire, 
Bigandet,  Eugene  Burnoul,  Spence  Hardy,  and  Max 
Miiller,  all  agree  with  the  view  presented  by  Mr.  Judson 
many  years  ago,  that  Nirvana  or  Nighan  is  nothing  less 
than  a  total  extinction  of  soul  and  body.  It  is  the  final 
blowing  out  of  the  soul,  as  of  a  lamp  ;  not  its  absorption, 
as  when  a  "  dewdrop  slips  into  the  shining  sea."   It  is 

To  perish  rather,  swallowed  up  and  lost 
In  the  wide  womb  of  uncreated  night, 
Devoid  of  sense  and  motion. 

But  in  what  way  is  this  bliss  of  annihilation  to  be 
reached  ?  Only  by  a  long  and  arduous  struggle.  There 
are  four  truths  to  be  believed.  1.  There  is  nothing  in 
life  but  sorrow.  2.  The  root  of  sorrow  is  desire.  S. 
Desire  must  be  destroyed.  4.  The  way  to  destroy  desire 
is  to  follow  the  eightfold  path,  viz.,  1.  Right  doctrine. 

2.  Right  purpose.  3.  Right  discourse.  4.  Right  be- 
havior. 5.  Right  purity.  6.  Right  thought.  7.  Right 
solitude.    8.  Right  rapture. 

But  in  order  to  do  these  eight  right  things,  five  com- 
mandments must  be  kept.   1.  Not  to  kill.  2.  Not  to  steal. 

3.  Not  to  commit  adultery.  4.  Not  to  lie.  5.  Not  to  get  in- 
toxicated. And  upon  these  commandments  Gautama 
himself  gives  the  following  commentary  : 

"  He  who  kills  as  much  as  a  louse  or  a  bug ;  he  who 
takes  so  much  as  a  thread  that  belongs  to  another ;  he 
who  with  a  wishful  thought  looks  at  another  man's  wife ; 
he  who  makes  a  jest  of  what  concerns  the  advantage  of 
another  ;  he  who  puts  on  his  tongue  as  much  as  a  drop 
of  intoxicating  liquor,  has  broken  the  commandments." 


BURMA  AND  BUDDHISM 


65 


There  are  four  stages  to  be  arrived  at  in  the  way  of 
salvation.  1.  The  believer  has  a  change  of  heart,  and 
conquers  lust,  pride,  and  anger.  2.  He  is  set  free  from 
ignorance,  doubt,  and  wrong  belief.  3.  He  enters  the 
state  of  universal  kindliness.    4.  He  reaches  Nirvana. 

In  this  succession  of  stages  Buddha  makes  right  con- 
duct a  precedent  condition  to  spiritual  knowledge ;  and 
so  is  in  striking  harmony  with  a  greater  than  he  :  "  If 
any  man  willeth  to  do  his  will,  he  shall  know  of  the  doc- 
trine." 

It  is  clear  that  the  strength  of  Buddhism  lies  not  in  its 
philosophy  or  theology,  but  in  its  code  of  morals.  To  its 
system  of  rightness  rigidly  practised  by  its  founder  it 
owes  its  vitality.  If  the  presentation  of  a  system  of 
morality  could  save,  then  long  since  India,  Burma,  Cey- 
lon, Siam,  Thibet,  and  China  ought  to  have  become  an 
earthly  paradise.  Besides  the  virtues  ordinarily  recog- 
nized in  heathen  codes,  Buddhism  teaches  meekness  and 
forbearance.  The  pious  Buddhist,  when  struck  a  violent 
blow,  can  meekly  reflect  that  it  is  in  consequence  of  some 
sin  that  he  has  committed  in  a  previous  state  of  existence. 
This  is  a  system  that  teaches  us  to  love  our  fellow-men 
tenderly  and  perseveringly.  "  As  even  at  the  risk  of  her 
own  life  a  mother  watches  over  her  own  child,  her  only 
child,  so  let  him — the  Buddhist  saint — exert  good  will 
without  measure  towards  all  beings." 

But  after  all,  Buddhism,  with  its  exquisite  code  of 
morals,  has  never  succeeded  in  cleansing  the  Augean 
stable  of  the  human  heart.  It  is  a  religion  without 
God,  or  prayer,  or  pardon,  or  heaven.  Its  laws  lack  the 
authority  of  a  law  giver.  Its  Nirvana  is  a  cheerless  and 
uninviting  prospect.  It  is  a  system  of  despair.  The 
spirits  are  weighed  down  by  the  vast  load  of  demerits 


56 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


and  haunted  by  the  anticipation  of  endless  ages  of  mis- 
ery. There  is  no  "  pity  sitting  in  the  clouds."  There  is 
no  way  of  forgiveness,  no  sense  of  the  divine  presence  and 
sympathy.  Under  such  a  system  of  cold  abstractions,  it 
is  not  strange  that  the  common  people  should  distort  the 
conception  of  Nirvana  into  an  earthly  paradise,  and  fly 
for  refuge  even  into  demon  worship,  and  other  forms  of 
Shamanism. 

In  Edwin  Arnold's  beautiful  poem  this  religion  has 
been  presented  in  a  most  burnished  and  fascinating  form ; 
but  no  one  whose  mind  is  not  filled  with  misconceptions 
of  Christianity  would  think  for  a  moment  of  exchanging 
the  "  Light  of  the  World"  for  the  "  Light  of  Asia." 


CHA.PTER  V 


LIFE  IN  RANGOON.  1813-19 

MR.  AND  MRS.  JUDSON,  as  has  already  been 
stated,  arrived  in  Rangoon,  June  13,  1813.  For 
almost  a  year  and  a  half  after  leaving  their  native  land, 
they  had  been  seeking  a  home  on  heathen  shores.  Having 
reached  Calcutta,  they  had  been  forced  by  the  oppressive 
policy  of  the  East  India  Company  to  take  refuge  upon 
the  Isle  of  France.  They  returned  again  to  India  and 
landed  at  Madras.  But  they  were  compelled  to  flee  a 
second  time,  and  having  reluctantly  relinquished  the 
strong  protection  of  the  British  flag,  had  at  last  settled 
down  in  Rangoon,  the  chief  seaport  of  the  Burman 
empire.  Their  own  desires  and  hopes  had  pointed  else- 
where ;  and  it  was  "  with  wandering  steps  and  slow  "  that 
they  had  come  to  this  destination.  God  had  drawn 
around  them  the  relentless  toils  of  his  providence,  and 
had  hemmed  them  into  this  one  opening.  But  subsequent 
history  has  proved  that  the  hand  which  led  them  so 
strangely  and  sternly,  was  the  band  that  never  errs. 
American  Christians,  in  their  assault  upon  Asiatic 
heathenism,  could  never  have  chosen  a  more  strategic 
position  than  Rangoon.  It  is  situated  near  the  mouth 
of  the  great  Irawadi  River,  which  is  thus  described  by 
an  English  officer : 

"After  draining  the  great  plain  of  upper  Burma,  it 
enters  a  narrow  valley  lying  between  the  spurs  of  the 
Arracan  and  Pegu  ranges,  and  extending  below  the  city 

67 


58 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


of  Prome.  Thus  the  mighty  stream  rolls  on  through  the 
widening  bay,  until  about  ninety  miles  from  tlie  sea,  it 
bifurcates ;  one  branch  flows  to  the  westward  and  forms 
the  Bassein  River,  while  the  main  channel  of  the  lower 
part  of  the  Delta  subdivides  and  finally  enters  the  sea  by 
ten  mouths.  It  is  navigable  for  river  steamers  for  eight 
hundred  and  forty  miles  from  the  sea,  but  it  is  during  the 
rainy  season  (Monsoon)  that  it  is  seen  in  its  full  grandeur. 
The  stream  then  rises  forty  feet  above  its  summer  level, 
and  flooding  the  banks  presents  in  some  places,  as  far  as 
the  eye  can  reach,  a  boundless  expanse  of  turbid  waters, 
the  main  channel  of  which  rushes  along  with  a  velocity 
of  five  miles  an  hour." 

The  two  natural  outlets  for  the  commerce  of  Western 
China  are  this  great  river,  and  the  Yang-tse-kiang,  which 
takes  its  rise  in  Thibet,  and  following  an  easterly  course 
of  nearly  three  thousand  miles,  empties  itself  into  the 
Yellow  Sea.  Along  this  channel  a  vast  tide  of  commerce 
has  followed  from  time  immemorial,  and  placing  upon 
the  river  banks  its  rich  deposits  of  wealth  and  population, 
has  occasioned  the  growth  of  Shanghai,  Nanking,  and 
other  enormous  cities.  But  the  merchandise  of  Western 
and  Central  China  would  find  a  shorter  and  easier  and 
cheaper  path  to  the  sea  through  the  valley  of  the 
Irawadi,  and  would  long  ago  have  pursued  that  course, 
had  it  not  been  impeded  and  endangered  by  rude 
mountain  tribes  which  the  governments  of  Burma  and  of 
China  have  not  as  yet  been  vigorous  enough  to  reduce  to 
harmiessness.  As  civilization  advances,  a  much  larger 
part  of  the  trade  of  Central  Asia  will  be  sure  to  find  its 
way  to  the  sea  through  the  valley  of  the  Irawadi. 
Christianity  always  enters  the  heart  of  a  nation  along  the 
lines  of  trade ;  so  that  Rangoon,  near  the  mouth  of  the 


LIFE  IN  RANGOON 


59 


Irawadi,  where  Mr.  and  Mi'S.  Judson  landed,  and 
Bhamo,  situated  at  the  head  of  navigation,  eight  hundred 
and  forty  miles  up  the  river,  where  the  American  Baptists 
have  planted  a  mission,  are  two  of  the  most  important 
strategical  points  for  the  conquest  of  all  Asia. 

Rangoon  is  described  by  an  American  traveler  who 
passed  through  it  about  the  time  of  the  arrival  of  the 
Judsons  as :  "A  miserable,  dirty  town,  containing  eight 
thousand  or  ten  thousand  inhabitants,  the  houses  being 
built  with  bamboo  and  teak  planks,  with  thatched  roofs — 
almost  without  drainage,  and  intersected  by  muddy  creeks, 
through  which  the  tide  flowed  at  high  water.  It  had 
altogether  a  mean,  uninviting  appearance,  but  it  was  the 
city  of  government  of  an  extensive  province  ruled  over 
by  a  viceroy,  a  woongee  of  the  empire,  in  high  favor  at 
the  court." 

It  may  be  well  to  consider  for  a  moment  the  task  which 
the  young  missionary  had  set  before  him  in  landing  in 
this  heathen  land.  What  did  they  propose  to  do,  this 
man  of  twenty-five  and  his  young  wife,  standing  amid  the 
level  irice  fields  on  the  coast  of  Lower  Burma,  with  their 
faces  turned  landward  toward  towns  and  cities  swarming 
with  idolaters,  the  hill-tops  crowned  with  heathen  temples 
and  pagodas  ?  Their  purpose  was  to  undermine  an  an- 
cient religion,  deeply  fixed  in  the  hearts  and  habits  of 
four  hundred  millions  of  human  beings.  They  did  not 
propose  to  bring  to  bear  influences  by  which  Christianity 
was  to  be  introduced  as  a  State  religion  and  reluctant 
knees  be  forced  to  bow  to  the  Christ.  This  would  have 
been  indeed  an  audacious  undertaking.  But  they  sought 
to  work  out  a  more  searching  revolution,  nothing  less 
than  a  change  of  belief  and  of  heart  in  each  individual. 
The  millions  of  Burma  were  to  be  taken  one  by  one — 


60 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


their  affections  subdued,  and  their  characters  transfigured 
by  the  religion  of  Christ.  They  felt  sure  that  in  the  mass 
of  people  about  them  there  was  here  and  there  a  man 
who  had  been  so  schooled  by  the  providences  of  God,  and 
so  matured  by  the  Divine  Spirit,  that  if  the  story  of  the 
cross  could  once  be  gotten  to  him  he  would  immediately 
accept  it  and  say,  "That  is  just  what  I  want."  As  the 
sod  of  moss,  brought  from  the  woods  into  the  house,  often 
contains  within  its  bosom  liidden  germs,  and  after  a 
season  in  the  warmth  of  the  parlor  sends  forth  sweet, 
unexpected  spring  flowers,  so  out  of  the  unattractive  sod  of 
heathenism,  under  the  genial  rays  of  the  Holy  Spirit, 
might  emerge  disciples  of  Christ,  and  these  disciples, 
organized  by  baptism  into  churches,  would,  by  the  same 
process  of  reaching  individual  souls,  little  by  little  leaven 
the  whole  of  the  empire. 

But  what  means  did  Mr.  Judson  use  in  his  endeavor  to 
bring  about  this  great  moral  and  spiritual  revolution  ? 
Simply  the  gospel  of  Christ.  The  sole  weapons  of  his 
warfare  were  the  old-fashioned  truths,  the  existence  of  a 
personal  and  beneficent  God,  the  fatal  sinfulness  of  man, 
and  salvation  by  faith  in  the  Son  of  God,  who  came  to 
"  seek  and  to  save  that  which  was  lost."  No  system  of 
truth  could  be  devised  more  diametrically  opposed  to 
Buddhism,  which  teaches  that  there  is  no  God  to  save, 
no  soul  to  be  saved,  and  no  sin  to  be  saved  from.  He 
felt  sure  that  if  he  could  only  plant  the  seeds  of  Chz'istian 
truth  in  the  soil  of  the  Burman's  heart,  then  under  the 
mellowing  influence  of  the  Holy  Spirit  they  would  ger- 
minate and  bring  forth  the  fruit  of  meek  and  pure  be- 
havior. As  in  flusliing  a  drain  a  large  body  of  pure 
water  is  poured  through  the  whole  length  of  it,  washing 
out  every  impurity,  so  the  gospel  of  Christ  is  a  cleansing 


LIFE  IX  RANGOON" 


61 


tide,  which  as  it  courses  through  the  individual  heart,  or 
through  human  society,  sweeps  away  before  it  all  the 
stagnant  and  loathsome  accumulations  of  sin. 

Mr.  Judson  did  not  believe  that  Christianity  must  needs 
follow  in  the  wake  of  civilization.  He  did  not  propose  to 
spend  his  time  in  teaching  the  arts  and  sciences  of  the 
Western  world,  in  imparting  more  correct  astronomical, 
geographical,  and  geological  conceptions,  in  order,  little 
by  little,  to  prepare  the  mind  of  the  Burman  to  accept 
his  religious  ideas.  He  had  implicit  confidence  in  the 
promise  of  his  Master,  "  Lo,  I  am  with  you  alway."'  He 
believed  that  Christ  was  with  him  in  the  heart  of  the 
heathen,  unlocking  the  door  from  the  inside. 

Again,  he  did  not  say  to  himself,  "  It  is  a  hopeless  task 
to  attempt  the  conversion  of  the  hoary  lieads.  I  will  try 
to  gather  the  little  children  together  and  establish  schools, 
and  thus  purify  the  fountains  of  national  life."  He  had 
his  schools,  indeed,  but  they  were  quite  subordinate  to  the 
work  of  preaching  the  gospel  to  the  adult  mind.  He 
reached  the  children  through  the  parents,  and  not  the 
parents  through  the  children.  He  believed  that  the 
grown-up  Burmans,  rather  than  their  children,  should 
bear  the  brunt  of  persecution  involved  in  embracing  a 
new  religion.  He  followed  the  method  of  the  Acts  of 
the  Apostles.  A  preacher  of  the  gospel,  he  did  not  allow 
himself  to  slirivel  into  a  mere  school  teacher  or  a  school- 
book  maker. 

There  were  only  two  channels  through  which  the  truths 
of  the  gospel  could  be  conveyed  to  the  conscience  of  the 
Burman — the  eyes  and  the  ears.  The  natives  were  em- 
phatically a  reading  people.  They  had  their  ancient 
scriptures  embodying  the  teachings  of  Gautama,  and  the 
first  question  asked  of  the  propagator  of  a  new  religion 


62 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


would  be,  "  Where  are  your  sacred  books  ?  "  So  that  one 
way  in  which  Mr.  Judson  communicated  the  gospel  was 
by  the  translation  of  tracts — either  succinct  and  concrete 
statements  of  Christian  truth,  or  portions  of  the  Bible. 
These  were  not  scattered  about  like  autumn  leaves,  but 
were  given  discriminatingly  to  individuals,  the  gift  often 
being  accompanied  by  a  solemn  injunction  to  read,  fol- 
lowed by  a  fervent  prayer. 

But  far  more  important  than  the  work  of  translating 
and  distributing  tracts,  catechisms,  and  portions  of  the 
Scripture,  was  the  oral  preaching  of  the  gospel.  For  tliis 
Mr.  Judson  had  rare  aptitude,  and  in  it  he  won  his  most 
signal  triumphs.  While  engaged  in  the  necessary  work 
of  translation,  he  was  always  pining  for  the  opportunity 
of  imparting  the  message  of  salvation  with  the  living 
voice.  In  a  letter  to  Dr.  Bulles  he  says :  "  I  h)ng  to  see 
the  whole  New  Testament  complete,  for  I  will  then  be 
able  to  devote  all  my  time  to  preaching  the  gospel  from 
day  to  day ;  and  often  now  the  latter  ajDpears  to  be  the 
more  pressing  duty.  May  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  be 
poured  out!  "  When  eye  meets  eye,  and  the  mind  of  an 
objector  is  confronted  by  a  living,  loving  personality,  he 
receives  a  deeper  impression  of  religious  truth  than  he  can 
ever  get  even  from  the  leisurely  perusal  of  a  printed  book. 
The  press  can  never  supplant  the  pulpit.  The  truth  which, 
when  pressed  heme  by  the  earnest  voice  of  the  speaker 
carries  with  it  conviction  and  arouses  the  conscience 
and  kindles  the  affections,  is  often  weak  and  thin  when 
presented  on  the  printed  page. 

But  Mr.  Judson's  preaching  was  unlike  that  of  the 
orator  about  whom  a  great  throng  gathers.  After  the  lit- 
tle chapel,  or  zayat,  was  built,  public  worship  indeed  was 
held,  the  audience  consisting  of  perhaps  a  hundred  per- 


LIFE  IN  RANGOON 


63 


*8ons.  But  most  of  the  preaching  at  first  was  to  the  indi- 
vidual. It  was  a  process  of  spiritual  buttonholing.  A 
single  person  would  enter  into  a  discussion  with  the  mis- 
sionary, while  a  few  others  would  draw  near  to  witness  the 
encounter.  It  was  in  these  hand-to-hand  frays  that  Mr. 
Judsou  often  extorted  exclamations  of  admiration  from 
the  bystanders,  as  with  his  keen  logic  he  hewed  bis  oppo- 
nent to  pieces  as  Samuel  did  Agag. 

His  preaching  was  concrete.  He  did  not  deal  in  vague 
abstractions.  Truth  assumed  in  his  mind  statuesque 
forms.  His  conversation  abounded  in  images  and  illus- 
trations ;  and  in  this  respect  he  resembled  the  great 
Teacher,  whom  Tennyson  thus  described : 

For  wisdom  dealt  with  mortal  powers, 
Where  truth  in  closest  words  shall  fail, 
When  truth  embodied  in  a  tale 

Shall  enter  in  at  lowly  doors. 

Behind  his  words  when  he  preached  lay  the  magnet  of 
a  great  character.  He  was  a  man  of  tender  sensibilities 
and  of  strong  affections.  There  was  no  mistaking  his 
motives.  He  had  come  a  long  distance  and  endured 
great  hardships  because  he  loved  the  Burmans — because 
he  loved  all  men.  Little  by  little  they  found  this  out ; 
and  the  power  of  a  preacher  is  in  direct  ratio  with  his 
capacity  for  inspiring  confidence  and  affection. 

Difficulties,  of  course,  at  once  presented  themselves. 
The  ardent  temperament  of  the  young  missionary  flung 
itself  against  the  hard  barriers  of  Burman  conservatism. 
Oriental  slowness  to  accept  a  new  idea  proved  a  strong 
obstacle  at  the  outset.  Another  great  difl3.culty  at  the 
be<?inning  was  learning  the  langjuasre  without  orrammar, 
or  dictionary,  or  an  English-speaking  teacher. 

But  the  chief  hindrance  to  preaching  the  gospel  to  the 


64 


ADOXIRAM  JUDSON 


Burmans  was  the  danger  of  persecution.  Mr.  Juddon  - 
found  himself  in  the  dominions  of  a  monarch  upou  whose 
slightest  nod  depended  the  life  of  each  subject.  Every 
convert  knew  that  in  adopting  this  new  religion  he  was 
encountering  the  risk  of  confiscation  of  property,  impris- 
onment, torture,  or  death  in  its  most  shocking  form. 

But  in  spite  of  these  great  difficulties,  and  even  in  the 
face  of  the  fact  that  many  of  his  brethren  an<l  sisters  in 
his  own  distant  native  land  regarded  the  undertaking  as 
hopeless,  and  looked  upon  him  as  an  obstinate  and  chi- 
merical fanatic,  he  never  for  a  moment  lost  hope.  He 
felt  as  sure  that  Burma  would  be  converted  to  Christ  as 
that  it  existed.  He  was  buoyed  up  by  the  same  faith 
that  caused  him  to  answer  many  years  after,  when  he  was 
asked  whether  he  thought  the  prospects  bright  for  the 
speedy  conversion  of  the  heathen,  "As  bright  as  the 
promises  of  God."  And  in  the  darkest  period  of  the 
history  of  our  missions,  he  sounded  the  bugle  call  which 
will  inspire  the  heart  of  the  Christian  missionary  until 
that  day  when  "  The  kingdoms  of  this  world  are  become 
the  kingdoms  of  our  Lord  and  of  his  Christ." 

"  If  any  ask  what  success  I  meet  with  among  the  na- 
tives, tell  them  to  look  at  Otaheite,  where  the  mission- 
aries labored  nearly  twenty  years  and,  not  meeting  with 
the  slightest  success,  began  to  be  neglected  by  all  the 
Christian  world,  and  the  very  name  of  Otaheite  began  to 
be  a  shame  to  the  cause  of  missions ;  and  now  the  Ijless- 
ing  begins  to  come.  Tell  them  to  look  at  Bengal  also, 
where  Dr.  Thomas  had  been  laboring  seventeen  years 
(that  is,  from  1783  to  1800,)  before  the  first  convert, 
Krishna,  was  baptized.  When  a  few  converts  are  once 
made,  things  move  on;  but  it  requires  a  much  longer  time 
than  I  have  been  h.  re  to  make  a  first  impression  on  a 


LIFE  IN  RANGOON 


65 


heathen  people.  If  they  ask  again,  what  prospect  of 
ultimate  success  is  there?  tell  them,  as  much  as  that  there 
is  an  almighty  and  faithful  God,  who  will  perform  his 
promises,  and  no  more.  If  this  does  not  satisfy  them, 
beg  them  to  let  me  stay  and  try  it,  and  to  let  you  come, 
and  to  give  us  our  bread;  or,  if  they  are  unwilling  to 
risk  their  bread  on  such  a  forlorn  hope  as  has  nothing  but 
the  word  of  God  to  sustain  it,  beg  of  them,  at  least,  not 
to  prevent  others  from  giving  us  bread ;  and,  if  we  live 
some  twenty  or  thirty  years,  they  may  hear  from  ug 
again." 

After  a  few  months  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Judson  removed 
from  the  English  Baptist  mission  house  into  the  city 
proper.  The  mission  house  which  they  had  been  occupy- 
ing was  situated  half  a  mile  from  Rangoon,  near  the 
place  of  public  execution,  where  the  refuse  of  the  city 
streets  was  thrown,  and  not  far  from  the  place  where  the 
dead  were  buried.  While  outside  the  city  walls,  the  mis- 
sionaries were  exposed  to  robbers  and  to  wild  beasts.  It 
was  thought  best,  therefore,  to  move  into  the  city  itself, 
especially  as  in  this  way  they  would  be  brought  into 
closer  contact  with  the  people. 

After  they  had  been  in  Rangoon  about  a  year  and  a 
half,  Mrs.  Judson's  health  began  to  break  down  under 
the  effects  of  the  climate.  They  had  no  physician  to 
consult,  and  her  symptoms  proving  dangerous,  she  was 
obliged  to  sail  to  Madras  to  secure  both  medical  advice 
and  the  recuperation  of  a  sea  voyage.  She  set  sail  on 
January  25,  1815,  and  after  an  ' absence  of  nearly  three 
months,  returned  with  her  health  much  improved. 

This  painful  separation  occasioned  by  Mrs.  Judson's 
illness'  was  closely  followed  by  domestic  bereavement. 
A  little  son,  born  September  11,  1815,  and  named  Roger 


66 


ADONIRAlsr  JUDSON 


Williams,  died  OQ  the  fourth  of  the  following  May,  at 
the  age  of  seven  mouths  and  twenty-three  days. 

Following  this,  Mr.  Judson  himself  was  taken  ill,  after 
almost  three  years  of  the  closest  application  to  study. 
But  even  the  hours  of  his  illness  he  improved  by  formu- 
lating in  a  grammar  the  knowledge  he  had  acquired  of 
the  language.  Fearing  that  his  own  life  might  soon 
come  to  a  close,  he  determined  to  hlaze  the  trees  through 
this  hitherto  untrodden  wilderness  of  the  Burmese  lan- 
'guage,  by  putting  in  permanent  form  the  results  of  his 
own  studies.  On  July  13,  1816,  exactly  three  years  to  a 
day  after  bis  arrival,  he  completed  a  work  with  the 
modest  title,  "  Grammatical  Notices  of  the  Burman  Lan- 
guage," which  proved  of  great  value. 

Partially  recovering  from  his  illness,  Mr.  Judson  com- 
pleted on  July  30,  1816,  his  first  tract,  entitled,  "A  View 
cf  the  Christian  Religion,  in  three  parts.  Historic,  Di- 
dactic, and  Preceptive."  The  next  stej)  was  to  multiply 
this  tract,  and  speed  it  on  its  way  among  the  Burmans. 
A  press  and  Burman  types  had  already  arrived — a  valu- 
able present  from  the  English  Baptist  brethren  of  Serara- 
pore.  A  missionary  printer,  the  Rev.  Geo.  H.  Hough, 
and  his  wife,  were  already  on  their  way  from  America. 
Mr.  Rice  was  still  arousing  the  Baptists  in  the  United 
States  to  send  on  reinforcements  of  men  and  money. 

The  reinforcements  at  last  arrived.  On  October  15, 
1816,  the  Rev.  Mr.  Hough  with  his  family  landed  at 
Rangoon,  and  upon  his  arrival  he  immediately  put  the 
printing  press  into  operation.  One  thousand  copies  of 
the  tract  above  mentioned,  and  three  thousand  copies  of 
a  catechism  which  had  just  been  completed  by  Mrs.  Jud- 
son, were  struck  off  and  put  into  circulation.  This 
strange  new  religion  could  not  fail  of  at  least  catching 


LIFE  IN  RANGOON 


67 


the  attention  of  the  inquisitive  Burmans.  As  the  fisher- 
men attach  many  hooks  to  a  long  line  stretched  across  a 
river,  hoping  that  at  least  a  few  of  the  many  fish  swim- 
ming past  may  be  taken,  so  our  missionaries  with  much 
care  and  toil  adjusted  their  trawl  of  tracts  in  the  midst 
of  the  dense  Burmese  population,  and  anxiously,  prayer- 
fully awaited  the  result. 

On  May  20,  1817,  Mr.  Judson  completed  the  transla- 
tion of  the  Gospel  of  Matthew.  This  marks  the  first 
stage  in  the  monumental  task  of  translating  the  whole 
Bible  into  Burmese.  Two  days  later  he  began  to  com- 
pile a  Burman  dictionary.  But  close  application  for 
more  than  four  years  to  the  study  of  the  Burman  lan- 
guage, to  the  translation  of  tracts  and  Scriptures,  and  to 
the  compilation  of  a  grammar  and  dictionary,  was  break- 
ing down  his  health.  A  sea  voyage  was  needed  to  restore 
his  vigor.  But  need  of  rest  alone  would  not  have  caused 
him  to  take  even  a  few  weeks'  vacation  from  his  toils 
and  cares.  He  was  impatient  to  begin  holding  public 
services  in  the  Burman  tongue.  But  although  he  under- 
stood the  structure  of  the  language,  and  could  read, 
write,  and  speak  in  Burman,  yet  for  conducting  public 
worship  he  felt  the  need  of  a  native  Christian  helper. 

Burma  is  flanked  on  the  western  side  by  the  mountains 
of  Arracan  ;  between  these  and  the  bay  of  Bengal  lies 
the  flat  coast  district  of  Chittagong.  It  had  been  ceded 
to  the  English.  The  inhabitants  of  this  district  spoke 
Burmese.  A  few  years  before,  the  English  Baptists  had 
begun  a  mission  in  Chittagong.  Several  converts  had 
been  baptized,  when  the  mission  was  abandoned.  Mr. 
Judson  conceived  the  plan  of  visiting  Chittagong,  in 
order  to  gather  together  the  scattered  converts,  instruct 
them  anew,  and  perhaps  bring  one  or  two  of  them  to 


68 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


help  him  in  Ran-roon.  This  would  furnis!!  him  employ- 
ment during  the  needed  vacation.  Besides,  the  rare 
opportunity  was  afforded  of  going  and  returning  in  the 
same  ship,  so  that  he  would  have  to  be  absent  for  only 
three  months.  This  pet  project  of  his  was  painfully  frus- 
trated, and  the  three  montlis  were  stretched  out  into 
almost  two-thirds  of  a  year.  The  voyage  was  attended 
by  peculiar  horrors. 

They  had  sailed  for  Chittagong,  a  passage  which  should 
have  been  made  in  ten  or  twelve  days  at  the  longest.  He 
had,  therefore,  prepared  himself  for  only  a  few  weeks' 
absence  from  home.  When  the  vessel  put  in  at  Cheduba, 
the  nervous  affection  of  his  head  and  eyes,  occasioned  at 
first  by  low  diet,  had  so  much  increased  by  exliaustion 
and  lack  of  food  that  he  was  unable  to  go  on  shore. 
When  they  approached  the  Coromandel  coast,  and  again 
encountered  contrary  winds,  they  were  reduced  to  almost 
the  last  extremity,  and  the  constitution  of  Mr.  Judson 
sank  under  these  accumulated  hardships.  The  mouldy, 
broken  rice,  which  they  picked  up  from  native  vessels, 
and  this  in  small  quantities,  with  a  limited  supply  of 
water,  was  their  sole  sustenance  for  three  or  four  weeks. 
Here  he  was  alone,  in  a  state  of  passive,  monotonous 
suffering,  with  no  one  to  share  his  privations,  and  nothing 
to  arouse  his  energies.  His  scanty  wardrobe,  prepared 
for  a  trip  of  ten  or  twelve  days,  had  been  long  since  ex- 
hausted, and  what  with  starvation,  filtii,  pain,  and  dis- 
couragement, he  became  unable  to  leave  his  berth.  At 
last  he  was  attacked  by  a  slow  fever,  and  turning  in  dis- 
gust from  his  little  mess  of  dirty  rice,  he  l)egged  con- 
tinually for  water!  water  !  water!  without  ever  obtaining 
enough  to  quench,  even  for  a  moment,  his  devouring 
thirs^t.    At  length  the  little  vessel  came  to  anchor  in  the 


LIFE  IN  RANGOON  69 

mud  of  Masulipatam,  some  two  or  three  miles  from  the 
low,  uninviting  beach,  and  the  captain  came  to  inquire  if 
he  would  be  taken  on  shore.  The  fact  that  they  were 
near  land  seemed  to  him  an  incredible  thing,  a  kind  of 
dreamy  illusion  too  fanciful  to  interest  him.  After  some 
urging,  however,  he  became  sufficiently  roused  to  pencil 
a  note,  which  he  addressed  to  "  any  English  resident  of 
Masulipatam,"  begging  only  for  a  place  on  shore  to  die. 
After  a  little  while,  one  of  the  men  came  below  to  tell 
him  that  a  boat  was  approaching  from  the  shore.  He 
now  succeeded  in  crawling  to  the  window  of  his  cabin, 
fiom  which  he  plainly  distinguished  in  the  rapidly  mov- 
ing boat,  both  the  red  coat  of  the  military  and  the  white 
jacket  of  the  civilian.  In  the  first  thrill  of  joyful  sur- 
prise, the  sudden  awakening  of  hope  and  pleasure,  he 
threw  himself  on  his  knees  and  wept.  Before  his  new 
friends  were  fairly  on  board,  he  had  succeeded  in  gaining 
some  little  self-control.  He  used  to  say  afterward,  "  The 
white  face  of  an  Englishman  never  looked  to  me  so 
beautiful,  so  like  my  conception  of  what  angel  faces  are, 
as  when  these  strangers  entered  my  cabin." 

They  were  very  much  shocked  at  his  visible  wretched- 
ness: he  was  haggard,  unshaven,  dirty,  and  so  weak  that 
he  could  with  difficulty  support  his  own  weight.  Their 
earnest  cordiality  was  peculiarly  grateful  to  him.  One 
of  the  officers  took  him  to  his  own  house,  supplied  him 
from  bis  own  wardrobe,  procured  a  nurse,  whom,  how- 
ever, he  had  occasion  to  employ  but  a  short  time,  and 
displayed  throughout  a  generous  hospitality  which  Dr. 
Judson  never  forgot. 

But  his  anxieties  and  sufferings  during  this  voyage 
were  fully  paralleled  by  those  of  the  heroic  woman 
whom  he   had  left  behind  him  at  Rangoon.  From 


70 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


Christmas  Day,  1817,  until  July  16,  of  the  follovviag 
year,  no  word  whatever  came  to  Mrs.  Judson  from  her 
husband,  from  whom  she  had  expected  to  be  parted  only 
for  a  few  weeks.  She  occupied  part  of  her  time  teaching 
about  thirty  Burman  women  whom  she  had  gathered 
together.  A  succession  of  disasters  had  swept  over  the 
little  mission.  She  alone  faltered  not.  We  catch  a 
gleam  at  Rangoon  of  that  same  fidelity  and  courage  that 
afterward  burned  so  long  and  so  steadily  at  Ava  and 
Oung-pen-la.  The  mission  was  harassed  by  government 
persecution.  It  was  rumored  that  the  foreigners  were  to 
be  banished.  The  viceroy,  who  had  been  their  steady 
friend,  was  recalled  to  Ava,  and  the  new  viceroy  was  a 
stranger  to  them.  A  menacing  order  summoned  Mr. 
Hough  to  the  court  house,  with  the  message  that  "  If  he 
did  not  tell  all  the  truth  relative  to  his  situation  in  the 
country,  they  would  write  with  his  heart's  blood."  Mrs. 
Judson  interceded  in  person,  and  by  her  own  knowledge 
of  the  language  and  her  matchless  womanly  tact,  con- 
ciliated the  viceroy.  Asiatic  cholera  raged  in  Rangoon 
and  the  death  gong  sounded  all  the  day  long.  Rumors  of 
war  between  England  and  Burma  filled  the  air.  The 
English  ships  one  by  one  hastily  weighed  anchor  and 
slipped  out  of  the  harbor;  only  a  single  vessel  remained 
— the  only  way  of  escape.  Her  missionary  associates, 
the  Houghs,  determined  to  seize  this  last  opportunity,  and 
fly  from  the  country  before  it  was  too  late.  Against  her 
will  they  urged  her  on  board  ;  but  her  great  nature  rose 
in  its  strength,  and  she  insisted  on  going  ashore.  She  tore 
herself  away  and  went  back  to  the  mission  premises 
alone.  Her  husband,  if  still  alive,  should  not  return  and 
find  his  mission  station  deserted,  and  himself  in  Burma 
without  a  companion. 


LIFE  IN  RANGK)ON 


71 


After  this  gloomy  episode  the  prospects  of  the  mission 
began  to  brighten.  Mr.  Hough,  indeed,  had  gone  to 
Calcutta,  taking  the  printing  press  with  him,  so  that  for 
some  time  all  the  press-work  of  the  mission  had  to  be  done 
there.  But  ou  September  19,  1818,  Messrs.  Colman  and 
Wheelock,  with  their  wives,  arrived  in  Rangoon  and 
joined  the  mission,  to  which  meanwhile  Mr.  Judson  had 
safely  returned. 

The  time  had  now  come  when  his  long-cherished  de- 
sire to  hold  public  worship  among  the  Burmans  in  their 
own  tongue  was  to  be  gratified.  The  little  chapel  or 
zayat  had  been  built.  It  was  not  simply  a  church,  but  a 
religious  schoolhouse  as  well.  It  also  afibrded  a  conveni- 
ent place  of  rendezvous  where  Mr.  Judson  could  sit  all 
the  day  long,  attracting  the  attention  of  those  who 
passed  by,  and  often  engaging  them  in  religious  con- 
versation. 

On  April  4, 1819,  even  before  the  zayat  was  completed, 
the  first  public  service  was  held.  Mr.  Judson  was  thirty- 
one  years  old,  and  had  been  in  Rangoon  nearly  six  years 
before  he  ventured  to  preach  to  a  Burman  audience  in 
their  own  tongue.  This  marks  an  era  in  the  history  of 
the  Burman  mission  ;  for  it  is  a  noteworthy  fact  that  the 
institution  of  public  worship  was  soon  followed  by  the 
first  of  a  series  of  conversions. 

It  was  on  June  27,  1819,  about  seven  years  and  four 
months  after  Mr.  Judson  left  America,  and  about  six 
years  after  his  arrival  in  Rangoon,  tliat  he  was  permitted 
to  baptize  the  first  Burman  convert,  Mqung  Nau.  The 
secret  of  that  sublime  faith  which  enabled  him  to  endure 
without  a  misgiving  so  many  long  weary  years,  sowing 
without  the  joy  of  seeing  a  single  blade  of  grain,  may  be 
learned  from  the  following  lines,  which  he  wvote  in  pen- 


72  ADONIEAM  JUDSON 

cil  on  the  inner  cover  of  a  book  which  he  was  using  in 
the  compilation 'of  the  Burman  dictionary: 

In  joy  or  sorrow,  health  or  pain, 

Our  course  be  onward  still ; 
We  sow  on  Burma's  barren  plain, 

We  reap  on  Zion's  hill. 

These  words  suggest  the  difficulties  and  sufferings  that 
attended  the  commencement  of  public  worship  among  the 
Burmans,  and  the  progress  of  that  religious  movement 
which  culminated  in  the  beginning  of  Christianity  in 
Burma — the  baptism  of  the  first  three  converts,  Moung 
Nau,  Moung  Byaa,  and  Moung  Thahlah  ;  as  well  as  the 
conversion  of  the  humble  fisherinau,  Moung  Ing,  and  the 
learned  philosopher,  Moung  Shwa-gnong.  Just  at  this 
most  interesting  period,  when  three  Burmans  had  been 
baptized  and  many  others  were  inquiring  into  the  new 
religion,  a  black  cloud  of  persecution  gathered  over  the 
heads  of  these  young  converts  and  their  Chi-istian 
teachers.  The  viceroy  of  Rangoon  regarded  with  an  un- 
favorable eye  this  attempt  to  introduce  a  new  religion. 
When  informed  that  a  prominent  Burman  teacher  was 
about  to  renounce  the  religion  of  the  empire,  he  uttered 
the  ominous  sentence :  "  Inquire  further."  These  words 
scattered  the  group  of  inquirers  that  had  gathered  about 
Mr.  Judson  as  quickly  as  the  lifted  hand  disperses  a 
school  of  fish.  The  new  converts,  indeed,  stood  firm 
even  under  the  peril  of  the  confiscation  of  their  goods, 
and  the  risk  of  torture  and  death  ;  but  the  work  came  to 
a  standstill.  The  inhabitants  of  Rangoon  did  not  even 
dare  to  visit  the  foreign  teacher.  In  these  circumstances 
the  boldest  measure  seemed  to  Mr.  Judson  the  wisest. 
He  determined  to  board  the  lion  in  his  lair.  He  re- 
solved to  go  directly  to  Ava,  the  capital  of  Burma,  and 


LIFE  IN  EANGOON 


73 


lay  the  whole  matter  at  the  feet  of  the  emperor.  If  he 
could  gain  from  the  Burman  monarch  permission  to 
propagate  the  Christian  religion  among  his  subjects,  then 
he  would  be  at  once  exempt  from  the  annoyance  and  per- 
secution inflicted  by  provincial  underlings.  If,  on  the 
other  hand,  he  should  fail,  matters  could  not  be  made 
any  worse,  as  news  of  this  religious  movement  woul(] 
soon  get  to  the  ears  of  the  king. 

Before  Mr.  Judson  and  Mr.  Colman  set  out  for  Ava, 
tlie  little  group  of  missionaries  was  thinned  by  the  de- 
parture of  the  Wheelocks.  Only  seven  days  after  Mr. 
Wbeelock  arrived  in  Rangoon,  while  engaged  in  family 
worship,  he  had  a  hemorrhage,  and  on  August  7,  1819, 
set  sail  for  Bengal.  After  being  thirteen  days  at  sea, 
during  a  period  of  temporary  delirium,  he  threw  himself 
into  the  ocean.  While  Mrs.  Wheelock  was  engaged  iu 
writing,  and  he  apparently  lying  asleep,  she  heard  the 
cabin  door  close.  She  looked  around,  saw  that  he  was 
gone,  sprang  to  the  door,  opened  it,  and  discovered  that 
he  had  vanished  forever  from  her  sight.  The  ship  was 
sailing  with  such  speed  that  no  effort  could  be  made  to 
rescue  him.  The  death  of  this  young  man  was  a  great 
loss  to  the  infant  mission.  His  fervent  piety,  his  sweet 
and  uncomplaining  spirit,  and  his  devotion  to  the  work 
of  saving  the  heathen,  had  endeared  him  to  his  mission- 
ary associates.  After  mentioning  in  one  of  his  letters 
that  he  and  Mr.  Colman  had  only  one  room  each,  he 
adds :  "  We  prefer  one  room  in  Rangoon  to  six  in  Bos- 
ton.   We  feel  that  we  are  highly  blessed" 


CHAPTER  VI 


LIFE  IN  RANGOON  (Continued).  1819-23 

ON  December  21,  1819,  Mr.  Judson  and  Mr.  Colman, 
leaving  their  wives  alone  in  Rangoon,  began  their 
journey  up  the  Irawadi  to  Ava,  the  capital  of  the 
empire. 

The  journey  was  made  by  boat.  The  viceroy  granted 
them  a  pass  to  go  up  to  the  Golden  Feet,  and  to  lift  up 
their  eyes  to  the  Golden  Face.  After  making  arrange- 
ments for  their  wives'  residence  in  town  during  their 
absence,  they  went  on  board  their  little  craft,  which  was 
six  feet  wide  in  the  middle  and  forty  feet  long.  A  tem- 
porary deck  of  bamboos  was  laid  throughout,  and  on  the 
hinder  part  of  the  boat  the  sides  were  raised  with  thin 
boards,  and  a  covering  of  thatch  and  mats,  so  as  to  form 
two  low  rooms,  in  which  they  could  sit  and  lie. 

The  company  consisted  of  sixteen  besides  themselves : 
ten  rowmen,  a  steersman,  a  head  man — whose  name  was 
inserted  in  their  passport,  and  who  therefore  derived  a 
little  authority  from  government — a  steward  or  cook  for 
the  company — which  place  was  filled  by  tlieir  trusty 
Moung  Nau,  their  own  cook — a  Hindu  washerman,  and 
an  Englishman,  who  having  been  unfortunate  all  his 
life,  wished  to  try  the  service  of  his  Burnian  majesty; 
and  this  last  person  might  have  beeu  called  the  gunner, 
he  having  charge  of  several  guns  and  blunderbusses, 
which  were  indispensable  on  account  of  the  robbers  that 
infested  tlie  river. 
74 


LIFE  IN  RANGOON 


75 


They  had  been  much  perplexed  in  fixing  on  a  present 
for  the  emperor,  without  which  no  person  unauthorized 
could  appear  in  his  presence.  Their  funds  were  evidently 
inadequate  to  the  purchase  of  articles  which  would  be 
valuable  to  him  from  a  pecuniary  point  of  view ;  when 
they  considered  also  that  there  ought  to  be  a  congruity 
between  the  present  and  their  character,  they  selected 
that  book  which  they  hoped  to  be  allowed  to  translate 
under  his  patronage,  the  bible,  in  six  volumes,  covered 
with  gold  leaf,  in  Burman  style,  and  each  volume  en- 
closed in  a  rich  wrapper.  For  presents  to  other  members 
of  government,  they  had  taken  cloth  and  other  articles. 

Thus  manned  and  furnished  they  pushed  off  from  the 
shores  of  Rangoon.  At  night  they  moored  by  the  banks 
of  Kyee-myen-daing.  It  was  near  this  place  that,  a  few 
days  before  one  of  the  boats  belonging  to  a  late  collector 
of  Rangoon  had  been  attacked  by  robbers,  and  the 
steersman  and  another  man  killed  at  a  single  shot.  They 
felt  unwilling  to  remain  at  this  village,  but  found  it  nec- 
essary. 

On  the  30th,  they  reached  Kah-noung,  a  considerable 
town,  about  ninety  miles  from  Rangoon.  Here  they  met 
a  special  officer  from  Bassein,  with  a  detachment  of  men, 
sent  in  pursuit  of  a  band  of  robbers  who  had  lately  raado 
a  daring  attack  on  a  large  boat,  wounded  and  beaten  off 
the  people,  and  taken  plunder  to  the  amount  of  fifteen 
hundred  tieals.  The  commander  offered  them  an  escort 
for  the  journey  of  the  day  following,  which  lay  through 
a  dangerous  tract  of  country ;  but  they  declined  accept- 
ing, as  they  would  have  been  obliged  to  give  the  people 
presents,  without  deriving  any  substantial  assistance  in 
the  hour  of  danger.  They  however  took  all  needful  pre- 
cautions and  kept  a  strict  watch  at  night. 


76 


ADONIEAM  JUDSON 


On  January  the  25th,  about  a  mouth  after  leaviug 
Rangoon,  they  arrived  at  Ava,  and  saw  in  the  distance 
the  golden  dome  of  the  palace  amid  the  glittering 
pagodas.  They  set  out  early  on  the  following  morning, 
called  on  Mr.  G.,  late  collector  of  Rangoon,  and  on  Mr, 
R.,  who  had  formerly  been  collector,  but  was  now  out  of 
favor. 

Thence  they  entered  the  city,  passed  the  palace,  and 
repaired  to  the  house  of  Mya-d ay-men,  former  viceroy  of 
Rangoon,  now  one  of  the  public  ministers  of  State 
(woongyee).  They  gave  him  a  valuable  present,  and 
another  of  less  value  to  his  wife,  the  lady  who  had  for- 
merly treated  Mr.  G.  with  so  much  politeness.  They  both 
received  them  very  kindly,  and  appeared  to  interest 
themselves  in  their  success.  They  however  did  not  dis- 
close their  precise  object,  but  only  petitioned  leave  to  be- 
hold the  Golden  Face.  Upon  this,  his  highness  committed 
their  business  to  Moung  Yo,  one  of  his  favorite  officers, 
aud  directed  him  to  introduce  them  to  Moung  Zah,  one 
of  the  private  ministers  of  State  (a-twen-woon),  with  the 
necessary  orders.  This  particular  favor  of  Mya-day-meu 
prevented  the  necessity  of  their  petitioning  and  feeing  ail 
the  public  ministers  of  State,  and  procuring  formal  per- 
mission from  the  high  court  of  the  empire. 

In  the  evening,  Moung  Yo,  who  lived  near  their  boat, 
called  on  them  to  say  that  he  would  conduct  them  on  the 
morrow.  They  lay  down  in  sleepless  anxiety.  To- 
morrow's dawn  would  usher  in  the  most  eventful  day  of 
their  lives.  To-morrow's  eve  would  close  on  the  bloom 
or  the  blight  of  their  fondest  hopes. 

The  next  day  they  left  the  boat,  and  put  themselves 
under  the  conduct  of  Moung  Yo.  He  carried  them  first 
to  Mya-day-iiaen,  as  a  matter  of  form  ;  and  there  tiiey 


LIFE  IN  RANGOON 


77 


learned  that  the  emperor  had  beeu  privately  apprised  of" 
their  arrival,  aud  said,  "Let  them  be  introduced.''  They 
therefore  proceeded  to  the  palace. 

At  the  outer  gate  they  were  detained  a  long  time  until 
the  various  officers  were  satisfied  that  they  had  a  right  to 
enter,  after  which  they  deposited  a  present  for  the  private 
minister  of  State,  Moung  Zah,  and  were  ushered  into  his 
apartments  in  the  palace  yard.  He  received  them  very 
pleasantly,  aud  ordered  them  to  sit  before  several  gov- 
ernors and  petty  kings,  who  were  waiting  at  his  levee. 
They  liore,  for  the  first  time,  disclosed  their  character 
and  object — told  him  that  they  were  missionaries,  or 
"propagators  of  religion";  that  they  wished  to  appear 
before  the  emperor  and  present  their  sacred  books,  ac- 
companied with  a  petition.  He  took  the  petition  into  his 
hand,  looked  over  about  half  of  it,  and  then  familiarly 
asked  some  questions  about  their  God  aud  their  religion, 
to  which  they  replied.  Just  at  this  crisis,  some  one  an- 
nounced that  the  Golden  Foot  was  about  to  advance ;  on 
which  the  minister  hastily  rose  up  and  put  on  his  robes 
of  State,  saying  that  he  must  seize  the  moment  to  present 
them  to  the  emperor.  They  now  found  that  they  had 
unwittingly  fallen  on  an  unpropitious  time,  it  being  the 
day  of  the  celebration  of  the  late  victory  over  the 
Kathays,  and  the  very  hour  when  his  majesty  was  coming 
forth  to  witness  the  display  made  on  the  occasion.  When 
the  minister  was  dressed,  he  just  said,  "  How  can  you 
propagate  religion  in  this  empire?    But  come  along.'' 

Their  hearts  sank  at  these  inauspicious  words.  He 
conducted  them  through  various  splendor  and  parade 
until  they  ascended  a  flight  of  stairs,  and  entered  a  most 
magnificent  hall.  He  directed  them  where  to  sit,  and 
took  his  place  on  one  side ;  the  present  was  placed  on  the 


78 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


other ;  and  Moung  Yo  and  another  officer  of  Mya-day- 
men  sat  a  little  behind.  The  scene  to  which  they  were 
now  introduced  really  surpassed  their  expectation.  The 
spacious  extent  of  the  hall,  the  number  and  magnitude 
of  the  pillars,  the  height  of  the  dome,  the  whole  com- 
pletely covered  with  gold,  presented  a  most  grand  and 
imposing  spectacle.  Very  few  were  present,  and  those 
evidently  great  officers  of  State.  Their  situation  pre- 
vented them  from  seeing  the  farther  avenue  of  the  hall ; 
but  the  end  where  they  sat  opened  to  the  parade  which 
the  emperor  was  about  to  inspect.  They  remained  about 
five  minutes,  when  every  one  put  himself  into  the  most 
respectful  attitude,  and  Moung  Yo  whispered  that  his 
majesty  had  entered. 

They  looked  through  the  hall  as  far  as  the  pillars 
would  allow,  and  presently  caught  sight  of  this  modern 
Ahasuerus.  He  came  forward  unattended — in  solitary 
grandeur — exhibiting  the  proud  gait  and  majesty  of  an 
eastern  monarch.  His  dress  was  rich,  but  not  distinctive  ; 
and  he  carried  in  his  hand  the  gold-sheathed  sword,  which 
seems  to  have  taken  the  place  of  the  sceptre  of  ancient 
times.  But  it  was  his  high  aspect  and  commanding  eye 
that  chiefly  riveted  their  attention.  He  strided  on. 
Every  head  excepting  theirs  was  now  in  the  dust.  They 
remained  kneeling,  their  hands  folded,  their  eyes  fixed 
on  the  monarch.  When  be  drew  near,  they  caught  his 
attention.  He  stopped,  partly  turned  toward  them — 
"  Who  are  these  ?  " 

"  The  teachers,  great  king,"  was  the  reply. 

"What,  you  speak  Burman — the  priests  that  I  heard 
of  last  night  ?  "  "When  did  you  arrive?"  "Are  you 
teachers  of  religion?"  "Are  you  like  the  Portuguese 
priest  ? "  "  Are  you  married  ?  "  "  Why  do  you  dress  so  ?" 


LIFE  IN  RANGOON 


79 


These  and  some  other  similar  questions  they  answered, 
when  he  appeared  to  be  pleased  with  them,  and  sat  down 
on  an  elevated  seat,  his  hand  resting  on  the  hilt  of  his 
sword,  and  his  eyes  intently  fixed  on  them.  Moung  Zah 
now  began  to  read  the  petition  ;  and  it  ran  thus  : 

"  The  American  teachers  present  themselves  to  receive 
the  favor  of  the  excellent  king,  the  sovereign  of  land  and 
sea.  Hearing  that,  on  account  of  the  greatness  of  the 
royal  power,  the  royal  country  was  in  a  quiet  and  pros- 
perous state,  we  arrived  at  the  town  of  Rangoon,  within 
the  royal  dominions,  and  having  obtained  leave  of  the 
governor  of  that  town  to  come  up  and  behold  the  Golden 
Face,  we  have  ascended  and  reached  the  bottom  of  the 
Golden  Feet.  In  the  great  country  of  America,  we  sus- 
tain the' character  of  teachers  and  explainers  of  the  con- 
tents of  the  sacred  Scriptures  of  our  religion.  And  since 
it  is  contained  in  those  Scriptures  that  if  we  pass  to  other 
countries  and  preach  and  propagate  religion  great  good 
will  result,  and  both  those  who  teach  and  those  who  re- 
ceive the  religion  will  be  freed  from  future  punishment 
and  enjoy  without  decay  or  death  the  eternal  felicity  of 
heaven — that  royal  permission  be  given,  that  we,  taking 
refuge  in  the  royal  power,  may  preach  our  religion  in 
these  dominions,  and  that  those  who  are  pleased  with  our 
preaching  and  wish  to  listen  to  and  be  guided  by  it, 
whether  foreigners  or  Burmans,  may  be  exempt  from 
government  molestation,  they  present  themselves  to  receive 
the  favor  of  the  excellent  king,  the  sovereign  of  laud  and 
sea." 

The  emperor  heard  this  petition,  and  stretched  out  his 
hand.  Moung  Zah  crawled  forward  and  presented  it. 
His  majesty  began  at  the  top,  and  deliberately  read  it 
through.   In  the  meantime,  Mr.  Judson  gave  Moung  Zah 


80 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


an  abridged  copy  of  a  tract  which  had  given  offense,  in 
which  every  ofleusive  sentence  was  corrected,  and  the 
whole  put  into  the  handsomest  style  and  dress  possible. 
After  the  emperor  had  perused  the  petition,  he  handed 
it  back  without  saying  a  word,  and  took  the  tract.  Their 
hearts  now  rose  to  God  for  a  display  of  his  grace.  "  O 
have  mercy  on  Burma !    Have  mercy  on  her  king." 

But  alas !  the  time  was  not  yet  come.  He  held  the 
tract  long  enough  to  read  the  first  two  sentences,  which 
asserted  that  there  is  one  eternal  God,  who  is  independent 
of  the  incidents  of  mortality,  and  that  beside  him  there 
is  no  God  ;  and  then  with  an  air  of  indifference,  perhaps 
disdain,  he  dashed  it  down  to  the  ground.  Moung  Zah 
stooped  forward,  picked  it  up,  and  handed  it  to  tlie  mission- 
aries. Moung  Yo  made  a  slight  attempt  to  save  them  by 
unfolding  one  of  the  volumes  which  composed  their  present 
and  displaying  its  beauty ;  but  his  majesty  took  no 
notice.  Their  fate  was  decided.  After  a  few  moments, 
Moung  Zah  interpreted  his  royal  master's  will  in  the  fol- 
lowing terms : 

"  Why  do  you  ask  for  such  permission  ?  Have  not  the 
Portuguese,  the  English,  the  Mussulmans,  and  people  of 
all  other  religions,  full  liberty  to  practise  and  worship 
according  to  their  own  customs  ?  In  regard  to  the  objects 
of  your  petition,  his  majesty  gives  no  order.  In  regard 
to  your  sacred  books,  his  majesty  has  no  use  for  them ; 
take  them  away." 

Something  was  now  said  about  brother  Colmau's  skill 
in  medicine ;  upon  which  the  emperor  once  more  opened 
his  mouth,  and  said,  "  Let  them  proceed  to  the  residence 
of  my  physician,  the  Portuguese  priest ;  let  him  examine 
whether  they  can  be  useful  to  me  iu  that  line,  and  report 
accordingly." 


LIFE  IN  RANGOON 


81 


He  then  rose  from  his  seat,  strode  on  to  the  end  of  the 
hall,  and  there,  after  having  dashed  to  the  ground  the 
first  intelligence  that  he  -had  ever  received  of  the  eternal 
God,  his  Maker,  his  Preserver,  his  Judge,  he  threw  him- 
self down  on  a  cushion,  and  lay  listening  to  the  music, 
and  gazing  at  the  parade  moving  on  before  him. 

As  for  the  missionaries  and  their  present,  they  were  hud- 
dled up  and  hurried  away  without  much  ceremony.  They 
passed  out  of  the  palace  gates  with  much  more  facility  than 
they  had  entered,  and  were  conducted  first  to  the  house  of 
Mya-day-men.  There  his  o:ticer  reported  their  reception, 
but  in  as  favorable  terms  as  possible ;  and  as  his  highness 
was  not  apprised  of  their  precise  object,  their  repulse 
appeared  probably  to  him  not  so  decisive  as  they  knew  it 
to  be. 

They  were  next  conducted  two  miles  through  the  heat 
of  the  sun  and  dust  of  the  streets  of  Ava  to  the  residence 
of  the  Portuguese  priest.  He  very  speedily  ascertained 
that  they  were  in  possession  of  no  Avonderful  secret  which 
would  secure  the  emperor  from  all  disease  and  make  him 
live  forever ;  and  they  were  accordingly  allowed  to  take 
leave  of  the  reverend  inquisitor,  and  retreat  to  their 
boat. 

At  this  stage  of  the  business,  notwithstanding  the  de- 
cided repulse  they  had  received,  they  still  cherished  some 
hope  of  ultimately  gaining  their  point.  They  regretted 
that  a  sudden  interruption  had  prevented  their  explain- 
ing their  objects  to  Moung  Zah  in  that  familiar  and  con- 
fidential manner  which  they  had  intended  ;  and  they 
determined  therefore  to  make  another  attempt  upon  him 
in  private. 

The  following  day,  early  in  the  morning,  they  had  the 
pleasure  of  seeing  their  friend  Mr.  G.  coming  to  their 

F 


82 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


boat.  It  may  not  be  amiss  to  mention  that  he  was  the 
collector  who  had  been  chiefly  instrumental  in  relieving 
them  from  an  exorbitant  demand  which,  a  few  months 
before,  had  been  made  upon  them  in  Rangoon.  He  now 
told' them  that  he  had  heard  of  their  repulse,  but  would 
not  have  them  give  uj)  all  hope ;  that  he  was  particularly 
acquainted  with  Moung  Zah,  and  would  accompany  them 
to  his  house  a  little  before  sunset,  at  an  hour  when  he  was 
accessible.    This  precisely  accorded  with  their  intentions. 

In  the  afternoon,  therefore,  they  called  on  Mr.  G.,  and 
he  went  with  them  into  the  city.  On  the  way  they  paid 
a  visit  to  the  wife  of  the  then  viceroy  of  Rangoon,  whose 
eldest  son  had  married  the  daughter  of  the  emperor. 
They  carried  a  present,  and  were  of  course  kindly  re- 
ceived. 

Thence  they  went  to  the  house  of  Moung  Zah,  some 
way  beyond  the  palace.  He  received  them  with  great 
coldness  and  reserve.  The  conversation,  which  they  car- 
ried on  chiefly  through  Mr.  G.,  it  is  unnecessary  to  detail. 
Suffice  it  to  say,  that  they  ascertained  beyond  a  doubt, 
that  the  policy  of  the  Burman  Government  in  regard  to 
the  toleration  of  any  foreign  religion,  was  precisely  the 
same  as  that  of  the  Chinese ;  that  it  was  quite  out  of  the 
question  whether  any  of  the  subjects  of  the  emperor 
who  embraced  a  religion  difierent  from  his  own,  would 
be  exempt  from  punishment ;  and  that  Mr.  Judson  and 
his  companion,  in  presenting  a  petition  to  that  effect,  had 
been  guilty  of  a  most  egregious  blunder,  an  unpardonable 
offense. 

Mr.  G.  urged  every  argument  they  suggested,  and 
some  others.  He  finally  stated  that  if  they  obtained  the 
royal  favor  other  foreigners  would  come  and  settle  in  the 
empire,  and  trade  would  be  greatly  benefited.  This 


LIFE  IN  RANGOON 


83 


argument  alone  seemed  to  have  any  effect  on  the  mind  of 
the  minister,  and  looking  out  from  the  cloud  which 
covered  his  face  he  vouchsafed  to  say  that  if  we  would 
wait  some  time  he  would  endeavor  to  speak  to  his  majesty 
about  them.  From  this  remark  it  was  impossible  to  de- 
rive any  encouragement ;  and  having  nothing  further  to 
urge,  they  left  Mr.  G.,  and  bowing  down  to  the  ground, 
took  leave  of  this  great  minister  of  State  who,  under  the 
emperor,  guided  the  movements  of  the  whole  empire. 

It  was  now  evening.  They  had  four  miles  to  walk  by 
moonlight.  Arrived  at  the  boat,  they  threw  themselves 
down,  completely  exhausted  in  body  and  mind.  For 
three  days  they  bad  walked  eight  miles  a  day,  the  most 
of  the  way  in  the  heat  of  the  sun,  which  even  at  that 
season,  in  the  interior  of  those  countries,  is  exceedingly 
oppressive,  and  the  result  had  been  an  apparent  failure. 

After  making  several  more  ineffectual  attempts  to 
reach  the  emperor,  they  began  their  return  journey  on 
February  6th,  having  spent  two  weeks  in  Ava  without 
success.  Sad  at  heart  they  descended  the  Irawadi,  and 
after  an  uneventful  journey  of  a  fortnight,  arrived 
in  Rangoon,  February  18th.  They  were  utterly  dis- 
heartened, for  their  journey  had  been  a  complete  failure. 
The  emperor  had  refused  to  give  them  permission  to 
propagate  the  Christian  religion  among  his  subjects ;  and 
any  Burman  who  should  renounce  Buddhism  and  become 
a  Christian,  would  incur  the  displeasure  of  his  sovereign. 

Mr.  Judson  at  once  decided  to  remove  the  mission  to 
Chittagoug,  where  under  the  protection  of  the  British 
flag  he  could  preach  Christ  to  a  Burmese-speaking  popu- 
lation. He  gathered  his  converts  and  inquirers  together, 
and  made  no  concealment  of  the  failure  at  Ava.  He 
pictured  the  sufferings  to  which  the  Burman  would  be 


84 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


exposed  who  should  espouse  Christianity,  while  he  de- 
clared his  intention,  reluctantly  formed,  of  leaving  the 
corntry.  But  to  his  great  surprise  his  converts  stood 
firm.  They  expressed  their  willingness  to  suffer  persecu- 
tion, and  even  death,  rather  than  renounce  Christ.  They 
entreated  him  not  to  leave  them.  "  Stay  at  least,"  they 
said,  "  until  a  little  church  of  ten  is  collected,  and  a 
native  teacher  is  set  over  it,  and  then,  if  you  must  go, 
we  will  not  say  nay.  In  that  case  we  shall  not  be  con- 
cerned. This  religion  will  spread  of  itself.  The  emperor 
can  not  stop  it."  The  heroism  of  the  disciples  prevailed 
to  keep  the  teacher  in  Rangoon. 

It  was  thought  best,  however,  that  Mr.  Colman  and  his 
wife  should  go  to  Chittagong  to  gather  together  the  few  con- 
verts left  there  by  the  English  Baptists,  and  to  preach  the 
gospel  to  the  Arracanese.  Thus  Chittagong  might  prove 
an  asylum  for  the  Judsons  and  their  Burman  converts  if 
they  should  be  hunted  out  of  Rangoon.  On  March  27, 
1820,  Mr.  Colman  embarked  for  Arracan,  where  after  a 
short  but  heroic  missionary  career,  he  died  at  Cox's  Ba- 
zaar, on  the  4th  of  July,  1822. 

Thus  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Judsou  again  found  themselves 
alone  at  Rangoon.  The  Houghs,  the  Wheelocks,  the  Col- 
mans  had  gone.  They  were  left  with  their  group  of  three 
(onverts  to  continue  the  conflict  with  heathenism.  But 
strange  to  say  in  this  darkest  hour  of  all  the  Spirit  began 
to  work  mightily  in  the  hearts  of  the  Burmans.  Within 
five  months,  in  the  very  face  of  impending  persecution, 
seven  heathen,  one  after  another,  were  converted  and 
baptized,  among  them  the  learned,  skeptical  Moung 
Shwa-gnong,  and  the  first  woman,  Mah-men-la.  The 
church  of  three  native  converts  rapidly  grew  into  a 
church  of  ten.    But  at  this  point  Mrs.  Judson's  health 


LIFE  IN  RANGOON 


85 


became  so  completely  shattered  that  in  order  to  save  her 
life,  Mr.  Judson  had  to  take  her  to  Calcutta. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Judson  embarked  at  Rangoon  July  19, 
1820,  and  arrived  at  Calcutta  on  the  18th  of  August. 
What  a  pang  it  must  have  cost  them  to  leave  their  little 
mission  just  at  this  time  when,  after  long  years  of  wait- 
ing, they  saw  the  Burmans  eagerly  and  rapidly  embrac- 
ing the  gospel ! 

The  three  months  spent  at  Serampore,  near  Calcutta, 
caused  a  great  improvement  in  Mrs.  Judson's  health. 
The  two  weary  missionaries  had  sweet  and  restful  inter- 
course with  the  English  Baptists  stationed  there,  and 
with  "the  affectionate  family  of  Mr.  Hough."  Mr. 
Judson's  enjoyment  was  only  marred  by  his  extreme 
anxiety  about  "  those  few  sheep  that  I  have  left  in  the 
Burman  wilderness."  "  Oh,  may  the  great  Shepherd,"  he 
prayed,  "  feed  the  little  flock,  and  gather  the  lambs  with 
his  arm,  and  carry  them  in  his  bosom." 

On  November  23d,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Judson  embarked 
again  for  Rangoon,  where  they  arrived  January  5,  1821. 
Their  voyage  was  tedious  and  distressing  above  any  that 
they  had  ever  taken.  The  brig  was  so  small  and  so  filled 
with  native  passengers  that  they  were  unable  to  obtain  the 
least  exercise  by  walking  on  deck,  and  it  was  so  full  of 
scorpions  and  centipedes  that  they  never  dared  close  their 
eyes  to  sleep  without  completely  enfolding  themselves  with 
curtains.  In  addition  to  these  inconveniences,  they  had 
a  strong  contrary  wind,  and  frequently  violent  squalls, 
with  the  most  terrific  thunder  and  lightning  they  had 
ever  witnessed.  They  were  six  weeks  in  making  a  pas- 
sage which  was  generally  made  in  ten  or  fifteen  davs. 
After  their  joyous  arrival  in  Rangoon  they  plunged  once 
more  into  their  missionary  work. 


86 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


It  now  became  Mr.  Jiidson's  painful  duty  to  send  bis 
wife  to  America.  Tbis  would  occasion  a  separatioa  of  at 
least  two  years,  but  unless  it  was  done  the  life  so  dear  to 
him,  and  of  such  incalculable  value  to  the  Burraau  mis- 
sion, would  soon  be  brought  to  a  close.  In  accord  with 
this  resolve,  Mrs.  Judson  embarked  for  Calcutta,  on  her 
way  to  America,  August  21,  1821.  His  letters  written 
to  his  wife  during  her  absence  betray  here  and  there  a 
sinking  of  his  buoyant  spirits.  Even  while  on  her  jour- 
ney to  her  dear  native  land,  Mrs.  Judson  cast  "  a  longing, 
lingering  look  behind."  It  was  hard  to  leave  Rangoon, 
even  to  go  to  America. 

She  was  heartily  welcomed  by  the  Christians  of  Eng- 
land, and  was  entertained  at  the  house  of  Mr.  Butter- 
worthy  a  member  of  Parliament,  who  afterward  referring 
to  her  in  a  public  address  said  that  her  visit  at  his  house 
reminded  him  of  the  words  of  Scripture :  Be  not  forgetful 
to  entertain  strangers,  for  thereby  some  have  entertained 
angels  unawares.  She  arrived  in  America  September  25, 
1822,  and  remained  until  the  22d  of  June,  1823.  Her 
visit  in  this  country  awakened  great  missionary  enthusi- 
asm, and  on  her  return  she  was  accompanied  by  two 
newly  appointed  missionaries,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Wade.  She 
reached  Rangoon  on  the  5th  of  December,  1823,  after  an 
absence  of  about  two  years  and  three  months,  finding 
her  husband  having  made  appreciable  advance  in  his 
work,  and  with  still  larger  plans  for  the  future. 

After  Mrs.  Judson's  departure,  Mr.  Judson  had  been 
left  alone  in  Rangoon  for  nearly  four  months,  and  contin- 
ued his  labors  in  complete  solitude.  On  December  31, 
1821,  the  Rev.  Jonathan  Price,  M.  D.,  a  medical  mis- 
sionary, arrived  with  his  family  and  joined  the  mission. 
About  a  month  later  Mr.  Hough  and  his  family  returned 


LIFE  IN  EANGOON 


8'. 


from  Calcutta.  On  the  2d  of  May,  1822,  Mrs.  Price 
died,  after  having  been  in  the  country  only  five  months, 
and  was  buried  by  the  side  of  Mr.  Judson's  little  Roger. 
Dr.  Price's  medical  skill,  especially  shown  in  performing 
operations  for  cataracts,  attracted  the  attention  of  the 
Burman  emperor  at  Ava.  He  was  summoned  to  appear 
at  the  royal  court,  and  Mr.  Judson  thought  it  best  to 
accompany  him,  hoping  that  now  the  king's  favor  migiit 
be  secured  in  behalf  of  the  new  religion,  and  tliat  he 
might  even  be  permitted  to  plant  a  mission  in  the  capital 
city.  So  on  August  28,  1822,  Mr.  Judson  set  out  on  his 
second  journey  to  Ava,  this  time  in  the  company  of  Dr. 
Price,  and  at  the  expense  of  the  government.  In  the 
meantime  the  number  of  the  native  church-membership 
in  Rangoon  had  grown  from  ten  to  eighteen. 

Mr.  Judson  and  Dr.  Price  spent  five  months  in  Ava, 
returning  to  Rangoon  in  February,  1823.  They  were 
kindly  received  by  the  emperor,  who  being  impressed  by 
the  medical  knowledge  of  Dr.  Price,  invited  them  to 
make  their  residence  at  the  capital.  The  way  now  seemed 
open  to  establish  a  mission  in  Ava.  Mr.  Judson  alwa\  s 
longed  to  go  into  the  "region  beyond."  The  Houghs 
and  Wades  could  sufficiently  care  for  the  infant  church 
at  Rangoon.  Why  not  plant  a  church  in  the  heart  of  the 
empire,  under  the  shelter  of  the  throne  ? 

But  before  going  to  Ava  to  execute  his  daring  purpose 
to  plant  a  mission  in  the  capital  of  Burma,  he  must 
await  Mrs.  Judson's  arrival.  Ten  mouths  intervened 
between  his  return  from  Ava  and  her  arrival  at  Rangoon. 
During  this  time  he  completed  the  translation  of  the 
New  Testament  into  Burmese,  and  prepared  an  epitome 
of  the  Old  Testament,  which  might  serve  as  an  introduc- 
tion to  the  study  of  the  New.    On  the  13th  of  December, 


'88 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


1823,  eight  days  after  Mrs.  Judson's  arrival,  he  set  out 
in  company  with  her  for  Ava,  where  they  arrived  on 
January  23,  1824.  This  marked  an  epoch  in  Mr.  Jud- 
son's  life.  His  ardent,  active  temperament  was  to  be 
subjected  to  the  crucible  of  passive  endurance ;  and  we 
now  pass  from  the  record  of  his  activities  to  the  story 
of  his  sufferings. 


CHAPTER  VII 


LIFE  IN  AVA  AND  OUNG-PEN-LA.  1823-1826 

HEN  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Judson  left  Rangoou  to  estab- 


T  T  lish  their  home  in  Ava,  the  outlook  was  encour- 
aging. They  had  left  behind  them  a  small  but  vigorous 
church  of  eighteen  converted  Burmans,  under  the  care 
of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hough  and  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Wade. 
They  had  been  invited  by  the  king  to  live  in  the  capital 
city,  and  had  received  from  him  a  plot  of  ground  on 
which  to  build  a  mission  house.  They  felt  sure  of  royal 
protection  and  favor.  Many  persons  of  high  rank 
seemed  kindly  disposed  to  the  new  religion ;  while  Dr. 
Price  had  won  golden  opinions  by  his  medical  skill. 
They  immediately  commenced  the  building  of  a  little 
dwelling-house,  and  Mrs.  Judson  soon  had  a  school  of 
three  native  girls.  Mr.  Judson  preached  in  Burmese 
every  Sunday  at  Dr.  Price's  house,  and  held  worship 
every  evening. 

A  dark  cloud,  however,  was  gathering  on  the  horizon. 
War  was  impending  between  Burma  and  the  English 
government  in  India.  For  two  years  the  Christians  of 
America  were  kept  in  a  state  of  terrible  suspense, 
unbroken  by  any  tidings  from  their  missionaries  in  Ava, 
which  was  only  assuaged  by  fervent  and  universal  prayer 
on  their  behalf. 

The  occasion  of  the  war  was  Chittagong,  that  particu- 
lar strip  of  low  land  lying  along  the  sea  and  flanking 
Burma  on  the  west,  to  which  Mr.  Colman  had  gone  to 


89 


90 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


prepare  an  asylum  for  the  Judsons,  in  case  they  should 
be  driven  out  of  Rangoon.  This  district  was  under 
British  rule,  and  refugees  from  the  cruel  despotism  of 
Burma  had  taken  shelter  there.  The  Burmau  monarch 
insisted  that  his  victims  should  be  arrested  by  the 
English  authorities  and  handed  over  to  him.  Besides, 
he  felt  that  Chittagong  belonged  naturally  to  Burma. 
And  such  was  his  pride  and  his  contempt  for  British 
prowess,  that  he  deemed  it  quite  possible  for  him  not 
only  to  recover  this  territory,  but  even  to  conquer  the 
whole  of  Bengal. 

When  war  actually  broke  out,  suspicion  fell  at  once 
on  all  the  white  foreigners  residing  in  Ava.  They  were 
thought  to  be  spies  secretly  acting  in  collusion  with  the 
English  government.  They  were  immediately  arrested, 
fettered,  and  thrown  into  the  death  prison. 

"  I  was  seized,"  Dr.  Judson  writes,  "  on  the  8th  of 
June,  1824,  in  consequence  of  the  war  with  Bengal,  and 
in  company  with  Dr.  Price,  three  Englishmen,  one 
American,  and  one  Greek,  was  thrown  into  the  death 
prison  at  Ava,  where  we  lay  eleven  months — nine  months 
in  three  pairs,  and  two  months  in  five  pairs  of  fetters. 
The  scenes  we  witnessed  and  the  sufferings  we  underwent 
during  that  period  I  would  fain  consign  to  oblivion. 
From  the  death  prison  at  Ava  we  were  removed  to  a 
country  prison  at  Oung-pen-la,  ten  miles  distant,  under 
circumstances  of  such  severe  treatment,  that  one  of  our 
number,  the  Greek,  expired  on  the  road ;  and  some  of 
the  rest,  among  whom  was  myself,  were  scarcely  able 
to  move  for  several  days.  It  was  the  intention  of  the 
government  in  removing  us  from  Ava,  to  have  us  sacri- 
ficed in  order  to  insure  victory  over  the  foreigners ;  but 
the  sudden  disgrace  and  death  of  the  adviser  of  that 


LIFE  IN  AVA  AND  OUNG-PEN-LA  91 


measure  prevented  its  execution.  I  remained  in  the 
Oung-pen-la  prison  six  months  in  one  pair  of  fetters ; 
at  the  expiration  of  which  period  I  was  taken  out  of 
irons,  and  sent  under  a  strict  guard  to  the  Burmese  head- 
quarters at  Mah-looan,  to  act  as  interpreter  and  translator. 
Two  months  more  elapsed,  when  on  my  return  to  Ava,  1 
was  released  at  the  instance  of  Moung  Shwa-loo,  the 
north  governor  of  the  palace,  and  put  under  his  charge. 
During  the  six  weeks  that  I  resided  with  him  the  affairs 
of  the  government  became  desperate,  the  British  troops 
making  steady  advances  on  the  capital ;  and  after  Dr. 
Price  had  been  twice  dispatched  to  negotiate  for  peace  (a 
business  which  I  declined  as  long  as  possible),  I  was 
taken  by  force  and  associated  with  him.  We  found  the 
British  above  Pah-gan  ;  and  on  returning  to  Ava  with 
their  final  terms,  I  had  the  happiness  of  procuring  the 
release  of  the  very  last  of  my  fellow-prisoners ;  and  on 
the  21st  instant,  obtained  the  reluctant  consent  of  the 
government  to  my  final  departure  from  Ava  with  Mrs. 
Judson." 

In  these  few  modest  words  Mr.  Judson  passes  over  all  the 
prolonged  horrors  which  he  endured  in  the  confinement 
of  an  Oriental  jail.  Let  us  glance  at  his  experience  more 
in  detail.  His  imprisonment  was  remarkable  for  its 
duration.  For  nine  months  he  was  confined  in  three 
pairs  of  fetters,  two  mouths  in  five,  six  months  in  one ; 
for  two  months  he  was  a  prisoner  at  large ;  and  for 
nearly  two  mouths,  although  released  from  prison,  he  was 
yet  restrained  in  Ava  under  the  charge  of  the  north 
governor  of  the  palace,  so  that  his  confinement  reached 
nearly  to  the  end  of  twenty-one  long  months. 

Again,  for  most  of  the  time  of  his  confinement  lie  was 
ehut  up  in  a  loathsome,  wretched  place.    It  derived  its 


92 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


remarkable,  well-selected  name,  Let-ma-yoon — literally 
interpreted,  Hand,  shrink  not — from  the  revolting  scenes 
of  cruelty  practised  within  its  walls.  To  those  acquainted 
with  the  Burmese  language  the  name  conveys  a  peculiar 
impression  of  terror.  It  contemplates  the  extreme  of 
human  suffering,  and  when  this  has  reached  a  point  at 
which  our  nature  recoils — when  it  is  supposed  that  any 
one  bearing  the  human  form  might  well  refuse  to  be  the 
instrument  to  add  to  it,  the  hand  of  the  executioner  is 
apostrophized  and  encouraged  not  to  follow  the  dictates 
of  the  heart :  "  Thine  eye  shall  not  pity  and  thine  hand 
not  spare." ' 

The  Let-ma-yoon  was  a  building  about  forty  feet  long 
and  thirty  feet  wide.  It  was  five  or  six  feet  high  along 
the  sides,  but  as  the  roof  sloped,  the  center  of  it  was  per- 
haps double  that  height.  There  was  no  ventilation 
except  through  the  chinks  between  the  boards  and 
through  the  door,  which  was  generally  closed.  On  the 
thin  roof  poured  the  burning  rays  of  a  tropical  sun.  In 
this  room  were  confined  nearly  one  hundred  prisoners  of 
both  sexes  and  all  nationalities.  Dr.  Price  thus  describes 
the  impressions  he  received  on  entering  the  prison : 

"  A  little  bamboo  door  opened,  and  I  rose  to  go  toward 
it.  But  oh !  who  can  describe  my  sensations  ?  shackled 
like  a  common  felon  in- the  care  of  hangmen  the  oftscour- 
ing  of  the  country,  turned  like  a  dog  into  his  kennel,  my 
wife,  my  dear  family,  left  to  suffer  alone  all  the  rudeness 
such  wretches  are  capable  of.  The  worst,  however,  was 
yet  to  come ;  for  making  the  best  of  my  way  up  the  high 
steps,  I  was  ushered  into  the  grand  apartment.  Horror 
of  horrors,  what  a  sight !  never  to  my  dying  day  shall  I 
forget  the  scene:  a  dim  lamp  in  the  midst,  just  making 

I  See  Grouger's  "  Narrative  of  ImprisonmeDt  in  Biiruia." 


LIFE  IN  AVA  AND  OUNG-PEN-LA  93 


darkness  visible,  and  discovering  to  my  horrified  gaze 
sixty  or  seventy  wretched  objects,  some  in  long  rows 
made  fast  in  the  stocks,  some  strung  on  long  poles,  some 
simply  fetLered ;  but  all  sensible  of  a  new  acquisition  of 
misery  in  the  approach  of  a  new  prisoner.  Stupefied,  I 
stopped  to  gaze,  till  goaded  on,  I  proceeded  toward  the 
farther  end,  when  I  again  halted.  A  new  and  unexpected 
sight  met  my  eyes.  Till  now  I  had  been  kept  in  ignor- 
ance of  the  fate  of  my  companions.  A  long  row  of 
white  objects,  stretched  on  the  floor  in  a  most  crowded 
situation,  revealed  to  me  however  but  too  well  their  sad 
state,  and  I  was  again  urged  forward.  Poor  old  Rodgers, 
wishing  to  retain  the  end  of  the  bamboo,  made  way  for 
me  to  be  placed  alongside  of  Mr.  Judson. 

" '  We  all  hoped  you  would  have  escaped,  you  were  so 
long  coming,'  was  the  first  friendly  salutation  I  had  yet 
received ;  but  alas,  it  was  made  by  friends  whose  sym- 
pathy was  now  unavailing." 

The  following  description  of  the  interior  of  this  jail  is 
given  by  an  English  fellow-prisoner  of  Mr.  Judson  : 

"  The  only  articles  of  furniture  the  place  contained 
were  these  :  First,  and  most  prominent,  was  a  gigantic 
row  of  stocks,  similar  in  its  construction  to  that  formerly 
used  in  England,  but  now  nearly  extinct,  though  dilapi- 
dated specimens  may  still  be  seen  in  some  of  the  market- 
places of  our  own  country  towns.  It  was  capable  of 
accommodating  more  than  a  dozen  occupants,  and  like 
a  huge  alligator  opened  and  shut  its  jaws  with  a  loud 
snap  upon  its  prey.  Several  smaller  reptiles,  interesting 
varieties  of  the  same  species,  lay  basking  around  this 
monster,  each  holding  by  the  leg  a  pair  of  hapless  vic- 
tims consigned  to  its  custody.  There  were  heavy  logs  of 
timber,  bored  with  holes  to  admit  the  feet,  and  fitted  with 


94 


ADONIRAM  JUUSON 


wooden  pins  to  hold  thezn  fast.  In  the  center  of  the 
apartment  was  placed  a  tripod,  holding  a  large  earthen 
cup  filled  with  earth-oil,  to  be  used  as  a  lamp  during  the 
night-watches ;  and  lastly,  a  simple  but  suspicious  looking 
piece  of  machinery  whose  painful  uses  it  was  my  fate  to 
test  before  many  hours  had  elapsed.  It  was  merely  a 
long  bamboo  suspended  from  the  roof  by  a  rope  at  each 
end,  and  worked  by  blocks  or  pulleys,  to  raise  or  depress 
it  at  pleasure. 

"  Before  me,  stretched  on  the  floor,  lay  forty  or  fifty 
hapless  wretches,  whose  crimes  or  misfortunes  had 
brought  them  into  this  place  of  torment.  They  were  all 
nearly  naked,  and  the  half-famished  features  and  skeleton 
frames  of  many  of  them  too  plainly  told  the  story  of 
their  protracted  sufferings.  Very  few  were  without 
chains,  and  some  had  one  or  both  feet  in  the  stocks 
besides.  A  sight  of  such  squalid  wretchedness  can 
hardly  be  imagined.  Silence  seemed  to  be  the  order  of 
the  day ;  perhaps  the  poor  creatures  were  so  engrossed 
with  their  own  misery  that  they  hardly  cared  to  make  any 
remarks  on  the  intrusion  of  so  unusual  an  inmate  as  myself. 

The  prison  had  never  been  washed,  nor  even  swept, 
since  it  was  built  So  I  was  told,  and  have  no  doubt  it 
was  true,  for,  besides  the  ocular  proof  from  its  present 
condition,  it  is  certain  no  attempt  was  made  to  cleanse  it 
during  my  subsequent  tenancy  of  eleven  months.  This 
gave  a  kind  of  fixedness  or  permanency  to  the  fetid 
odors,  until  the  very  floors  and  walls  were  saturated  with 
them,  and  joined  in  emitting  the  pest.  As  might  have 
been  expected  from  such  a  state  of  things,  the  place  was 
teeming  with  creeping  vermin  to  such  an  extent  that  very 
soon  reconciled  me  to  the  plunder  of  the  greater  portion 
of  my  dress." 


LIFE  IN  AVA  AND  OUNG-PEM-LA  95 


Surely  it  was  enough  for  Mr.  Judson  to  be  shut  up  in 
the  hot,  stifling  stench  of  a  place  like  this  without  hav- 
ing his  ankles  and  legs  weighted  with  five  pairs  of  irons, 
the  scars  from  which  he  wore  to  his  dying  day.  He 
couJd  say  with  the  Apostle  Paul,  "  1  bear  in  my  bodv 
the  marks  of  the  Lord  Jesus."  In  eacli  pair  of  fetters 
the  two  iron  rings  were  connected  by  a  chain  so  short 
that  the  heel  of  one  foot  could  hardly  be  advanced  to 
the  toe  of  the  other  ;  and  this  task  could  be  accomplished 
only  by  "  shuffling  a  few  inches  at  a  time."  The  five 
pairs  of  irons  weighed  about  fourteen  pounds,  and  when 
they  were  removed  after  being  long  worn,  tiiere  was  a 
strained  sensation,  the  equilibrium  of  the  body  seemingly 
being  destroyed,  so  that  the  head  was  too  heavy  for  the 
feet.  Then  at  nightfall,  lest  the  prisoners  should  escape, 
they  were  "  strung  "  on  a  bamboo  pole. 

"  When  night  came  on,"  writes  one  of  Mr.  Judson's 
fellow-prisoners,  "  the  '  Father '  of  the  establishment, 
entering,  stalked  toward  our  corner.  The  meaning  of 
the  bamboo  now  became  apparent.  It  was  passed  be- 
tween the  legs  of  each  individual,  and  when  it  had 
threaded  our  number,  seven  in  ail,  a  man  at  each  end 
hoisted  it  up  by  the  blocks  to  a  height  which  allowed  our 
shoulders  to  rest  on  the  ground,  while  our  feet  depended 
Irom  the  iron  rings  of  the  fetters.  The  adjustment  of 
the  height  was  left  to  the  judgment  of  our  kind-liearted 
})i;rent,  who  stood  by  to  see  that  it  was  not  high  enough 
to  endanger  life,  nor  low  enough  to  exempt  from  pain. 
.  .  .  In  the  morning,  our  considerate  parent  made  his 
jippearance,  and  with  his  customary  grin,  lowered  the 
it:  mboo  to  within  a  foot  of  the  floor,  to  the  great 
i<  lief  of  our  benumbed  limbs,  in  which  the  blood  slowly 
btgan  again  to  circulate." 


96 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


When  Mr.  Judson  was  subjected  to  these  indignities 
and  tortures,  he  was  in  the  very  prime  of  life — thirty-six 
years  old.  He  had  come  to  that  age  when  a  good  physi- 
cal constitution  is  thoroughly  seasoned  and  well  qualified 
to  endure  hardship.  He  had  always  taken  the  best  care 
of  his  health.  Even  before  leaving  America,  he  had 
adopted  the  following  rules  :  First,  frequently  to  inhale 
large  quantities  of  air,  so  as  to  expand  the  lungs  to  the 
uttermost ;  secondly,  daily  to  sponge  the  whole  body  in 
cold  water ;  and  thirdly,  and  above  all,  to  take  sys- 
tematic exercise  in  walking. 

Again,  he  had  that  tough,  wiry  physique  which  en- 
dures unexpectedly  even  during  prolonged  crises.  All 
this  was  in  his  favor.  But,  on  the  other  hand,  he  was  a 
student,  unused  to  sufifering  hardship.  His  naturally 
vigorous  constitution  had  been  somewhat  enfeebled  by 
ten  years  of  close  application  to  study  in  a  tropical 
climate,  and  of  late  years  it  had  been  completely  shattered 
by  repeated  attacks  of  fever  and  ague.  He  was  reared 
in  the  cold,  bracing  air  of  New  England,  and  during  the 
tedious  hours  of  imprisonment,  how  often  must  his 
memory  have  projected  the  sufferings  of  the  Oriental 
jail  against  the  background  of  the  cool,  green  hillsides 
of  his  childhood ! 

He  was  possessed  moreover  of  an  active,  methodical  na- 
ture, to  which  the  enforced  idleness  of  twenty-one  months 
must  have  brought  the  keenest  torture.  There  was  his 
Burman  Bible  unfinished,  and  ten  years  of  work  in  Ean- 
goon  going  to  pieces  in  his  absence.  He  longed  to  be 
preaching  the  gospel.  Now  that  he  had  at  last  com- 
pletely mastered  the  native  tongue,  he  was  filled  with 
Jeremiah's  consuming  zeal :  "  His  word  was  in  mine 
heart,  and  a  burning  fire  shut  up  in  my  bones." 


LIFE  IN  AVA  AND  OUNG-PEN-LA  97 


Endowed  with  a  nervous  temperament,  his  nature  was 
exceedingly  sensitive  to  discomfort.  One  of  his  fellow- 
prisoners  says :  "  His  painful  sensitiveness  to  anything 
gross  or  uncleanly,  amounting  almost  to  folly,  was  an  un- 
fortunate virtue  to  possess,  and  made  him  live  a  life  of 
constant  martyrdom." 

A.  nature  amply  endowed  with  these  fine  sensibilities 
mast  have  instinctively  shrunk  from  the  filth  of  the  dun- 
geon and  the  squalor  of  the  prisoners;  while  the  con- 
strained and  crowded  position,  night  and  day,  and  the 
galling  fetters  were  almost  unendurable. 

There  was  also  much  to  shock  his  moral  nature.  He 
found  himself  thrown  into  close  association  with  the 
basest  criminals  of  the  Burman  capital.  His  pure  look 
rested  upon  their  repulsive  features,  his  reluctant  ears 
were  filled  with  their  vulgar  and  blasphemous  jests. 
Besides  this,  again  and  again  he  saw  the  wretched  pris- 
oner tortured  with  the  cord  and  mallet,  and  was  forced 
to  hear  the  Avrithing  victim's  shriek  of  anguish. 

He  was  likewise  a  man  of  the  strongest  and  tenderest 
affections.  What  keen  mental  anguish  must  he  have  ex- 
perienced at  the  thought  of  his  beloved  wife  threading 
alone  the  hot,  crowded  streets,  hourly  exposed  to  the  in- 
sults of  rude  Burman  officials ;  day  by  day  bringing  or 
sending  food  to  the  jail ;  assuaging  the  wretchedness  of 
the  prisoners  by  bribing  their  keepers ;  pleading  for  the 
release  of  her  husband  with  one  Burman  officer  after 
another,  and  with  such  pathetic  eloquence  that  on  one 
occasion  she  melted  to  tears  even  the  old  governor  of  the 
prison  ;  carrying  her  little  Maria  all  the  way  in  her  arms 
to  that  place  never  to  be  forgotten,  Oung-pen-la,  her 
only  conveyance  a  rough  cart,  the  violent  motion  of 
which,  together  with  the  dreadful  heat  and  dust,  made 

G 


98 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


her  almost  distracted ;  nursing  her  infant  and  the  little 
native  girls  under  her  care  through  a  course  of  small-pox : 
and  at  last,  breaking  down  herself  and  brought  to  death's 
door  by  the  same  loathsome  disease,  succeeded  by  the 
dread  spotted  fever ! 

Add  to  these  horrors  of  Mr.  Judson's  imprisonment 
the  daily  and  even  hourly  anticipation  of  torture  and 
death,  and  it  will  be  difficult  to  conceive  of  a  denser 
cloud  of  miseries  than  that  which  settled  down  on  his 
devoted  head.  The  prisoners  knew  that  they  were  ar- 
rested as  spies.  The  Burman  king  and  his  generals  were 
exasperated  by  the  rapid  and  unexpected  successes  of  the 
English  army,  and  Mr.  Judson  and  his  fellow-prisoners 
had  every  reason  to  suppose  that  this  pent-up  fury  would 
be  poured  upon  their  heads.  It  was  customary  to  question 
the  prisoner  with  instruments  of  torture — the  cord  and 
the  iron  mallet.  Rumors  of  a  frightful  doom  were  con- 
stantly sounding  in  their  ears.  Now  they  heard  their 
keepers  during  the  night  sharpening  the  knives  to  de- 
capitate the  prisoners  the  next  morning ;  now  the  roar 
of  their  mysterious  fellow-prisoner,  a  huge,  starving  lion- 
ess, convinced  them  that  they  were  to  be  executed  by 
being  thrown  into  her  cage;  now  it  was  reported  that 
they  were  to  be  burned  up  together  with  their  prison  as 
a  sacrifice  ;  now  that  they  were  to  be  buried  alive  at  the 
head  of  the  Burman  army  in  order  to  insure  its  victory 
over  the  English.  The  following  description  by  Mr. 
Gouger  of  the  solemn  hour  of  three,  shows  the  exquisite 
mental  torture  to  which  the  prisoners  were  subjected  : 

"  Within  the  walls  nothing  worthy  of  notice  occurred 
until  the  hour  of  three  in  the  afternoon.  As  this  hour 
approached,  we  noticed  that  the  talking  and  jesting  of  the 
community  gradually  died  away ;  all  seemed  to  be  under 


LIFE  IN  AVA  AND  OUNG-PEN-L.A  99 


fihe  influence  of  some  powerful  restraint,  until  that  fatal 
hour  was  announced  by  the  deep  tones  of  a  powerful 
gong  suspended  in  the  palace- yard,  and  a  death-like 
silence  prevailed.  If  a  word  was  spoken  it  was  in  a 
whisper.  It  seemed  as  though  even  breathing  was  sus- 
pended under  the  control  of  a  panic  terror,  too  deep  for 
expression,  which  pervaded  every  bosom.  We  did  not 
long  remain  in  ignorance  of  the  cause.  If  any  of  the 
prisoners  were  to  suffer  death  that  day,  the  hour  of  three 
was  that  at  which  they  were  taken  out  for  execution. 
The  very  manner  of  it  was  the  acme  of  cold-blooded 
cruelty.  The  hour  was  scarcely  tolled  by  the  gong  when 
the  wicket  opened,  and  the  hideous  figure  of  a  spotted 
man  appeared,  who  without  uttering  a  word  walked 
straight  to  his  victim,  now  for  the  first  time  probably 
made  acquainted  with  his  doom.  As  many  of  these  un- 
fortunate people  knew  no  more  than  ourselves  the  fate 
that  awaited  them,  this  mystery  was  terrible  and  agoniz- 
ing ;  each  one  fearing,  up  to  the  last  moment,  that  the 
stride  of  the  spotted  terror  might  be  directed  his  way. 
When  the  culprit  disappeared  with  his  conductor,  and 
the  prison  door  closed  behind  them,  those  who  remained 
began  again  to  breathe  more  freely ;  for  another  day,  at 
least,  their  lives  were  safe. 

"  I  have  described  this  process  just  as  I  saw  it  practised. 
On  this  first  day,  two  men  were  thus  led  away  in  total 
silence;  not  a  useless  question  was  asked  by  the  one 
party,  nor  explanation  given  by  the  other ;  all  was  too 
well  understood.  After  this  inhuman  custom  was  made 
known  to  us,  we  could  not  but  participate  with  the  rest  in 
their  diurnal  misgivings,  and  shudder  at  the  sound  of 
the  gong  and  the  apparition  of  the  pahquet.  It  was  a 
solemn  daily  lesson  of  an  impressive  character,  *  Be  ye 
also  ready.' " 


100 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


It  is  no  wonder  tliat  Mr.  Judson,  in  the  inidst  of  these 
horrors,  took  refuge  in  the  quietism  of  Madame  Guyon, 
and  used  often  to  murmur  her  beautiful  lines  : 

No  place  I  seek,  but  to  fulfill 
In  life  and  death  thy  lovely  will ; 
No  succor  in  my  woes  I  want, 
Except  what  thou  art  pleased  to  grant. 
Our  days  are  numbered — let  us  spare 
Our  anxious  hearts  a  needless  care ; 
'  Tis  thine  to  number  out  our  days, 
And  ours  to  give  them  to  thy  praise. 


CHAPTER  VIII 


LIFE  IN  AMHERST.  1826-1827 

THE  treaty  of  peace  was  signed  by  the  British  and 
Burmese  Commissioners  on  the  24th  of  February, 
1826.  On  the  sixth  of  the  following  month,  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Judson,  with  the  infant  Maria,  left  the  English  army 
encamped  at  Yan-ta-bo.  They  sailed  down  the  Irawadi 
in  a  British  gunboat,  and  arrived  at  Rangoon  March  21, 
1826.  Having  at  last  emerged  from  the  long  nightmare 
of  Oriental  imprisonment,  Mr.  Judson  turned  to  his  life- 
work  with  undiminished  ardor.  The  English  desired  to 
retain  his  valuable  services  as  interpreter,  and  ofiered 
him  a  salary  equivalent  to  three  thousand  dollars.  But 
the  offer  was  declined.  Like  the  late  Professor  Agassiz, 
he  had  "  no  time  to  make  money." 

Mr.  Judson  had  rapidly  recovered  from  his  imprison- 
ment, and  was  now  in  perfect  health, 

"  Even  little  Maria,"  he  writes,  "  who  came  into  the 
world  a  few  months  after  my  imprisonment  to  aggravate 
her  parents'  woes,  and  who  has  been,  from  very  instinct 
it  would  seem,  a  poor,  sad,  crying  thing,  begins  to  brighten 
up  her  little  face,  and  be  somewhat  sensible  of  our  happy 
deliverance." 

Missionary  reinforcements  had  already  come  from 
America.  Mr.  "Wade,  while  waiting  in  Calcutta  for  the 
war  to  close,  was  joined  by  George  Dana  Boardman, 
whose  brief  and  saintly  career  was  destined  to  make  his 
name  peculiarly  fragrant  to  American  Christians.  He 

101 


102 


ADONIEAM  JUDSON 


seemed  an  ideal  missionary,  so  completely  was  he  fitted 
for  his  work  by  his  scholarly  tastes,  affectionate  disposi- 
tion, and  fervent  piety.  He  had  taken  up  a  newspaper  a 
little  while  before,  and  had  seen  a  notice  of  Colmau's  un- 
timely death  in  Arracan.  In  the  twinkling  of  an  eye 
there  flashed  through  his  mind  the  question  and  answer : 
"  Who  will  go  to  fill  his  place  ?  "    "I  will  go." 

He  had  married  Sarah  Hall,  a  native  of  Salem,  Massa- 
chusetts. Those  who  knew  her  speak  of  "  faultless 
features,  molded  on  the  Grecian  model,  beautiful  trans- 
parent skin,  warm,  meek  blue  eyes,  and  soft  hair,  brown 
in  the  shadow  and  gold  in  the  sun."  She  was  pronounced 
by  her  English  friends  in  Calcutta  to  be  "the  most 
finished  and  faultless  specimen  of  an  American  woman 
that  they  had  ever  known."  From  her  earliest  years  she 
had  possessed  an  enthusiasm  for  missions.  When  ten 
years  old,  she  wrote  a  poem  upon  the  death  at  Rangoon 
of  Mrs.  Judson's  infant,  Roger.  Little  did  the  child 
dream  that  many  years  after  she  was  to  take  the  place  of 
the  ideal  heroine  of  her  childhood,  who,  worn  out  with 
the  prolonged  horrors  of  Ava  and  Oung-peu-la,  lay 
down  to  rest  beneath  the  hopia-tree  at  Amherst, 

Mr.  Wade  and  Mr.  Boardman  waited  anxiously  in 
Calcutta  for  news  from  the  Judsons.  They  did  not,  how- 
ever, wait  in  idleness.  They  were  learning  the  Burman 
language  as  best  they  could,  and  preaching  in  English  in 
the  Circular  Road  Baptist  Chapel,  where  they  were  per- 
mitted to  see,  as  a  result  of  their  labors,  many  persons 
converted  and  baptized.  When  news  came  at  last  from 
Mr.  Judson,  they  were  ready  to  join  him  and  labor  wher- 
ever he  should  think  it  best. 

But  to  return  to  Mr.  Judson  in  Rangoon.  Not  only 
did  he  find  that  the  white  teachers  and  their  wives  had 


LIFE  IN  AMHERST 


103 


been  driven  away  by  the  war,  but  the  native  church- 
membership  was  much  reduced.  He  had  left  a  church 
of  eighteen  disciples.  He  found  on  his  return  only  four. 
With  the  exception  of  two,  none  however  had  disgraced 
their  holy  profession.  The  learned  teacher,  Moung  Shwa- 
gnong,  had  gone  into  the  interior  of  the  country,  and 
soon  afterward  died  of  the  cholera.  The  only  four  whom 
Mr.  Judson  could  muster  after  the  war  had  swept  over 
Rangoon,  were  Moung  Shwa-ba,  who  had  remained  at  the 
mission  house,  Moung  Ing,  who  with  such  fidelity  served 
Mrs.  Judson  through  all  her  long,  bittter  experiences  at 
Ava,  and  two  faithful  women,  Mah-men-la  and  Mah- 
doke,  who  had  been  living  in  boats  at  Prome,  the  half- 
way place  between  Rangoon  and  Ava,  and  who  instantly 
resolved  to  accompany  the  Judsonf?  to  Rangoon.  These 
four  faithful  disciples  were  ready  to  follow  their  white 
teacher  wherever  he  should  think  it  best  to  establish  a 
mission. 

It  was  out  of  «the  question  to  think  of  remaining  at 
Rangoon.  The  English  were  only  holding  the  place 
temporarily,  until  the  Burmans  should  pay  their  war 
debt.  Indeed,  at  the  close  of  the  year,  the  English  army 
did  vacate  Rangoon,  and  the  Burmans  resumed  posses- 
sion of  their  chief  seaport.  Should  the  missionaries 
therefore  remain  in  Rangoon,  they  would  still  be  under 
the  cruel  sway  of  Burman  despotism.  In  addition,  the 
monarch  at  Ava  was  peculiarly  exasperated  with  his  sub- 
jects in  the  southern  part  of  the  empire,  because  they 
had  put  themselves  under  the  benignant  protection  of  the 
English  ;  many  of  the  peaceful  inhabitants  were  no  doubt 
to  be  massacred  by  the  royal  troops.  A  state  of  anarchy 
followed  the  war.  A  famine  succeeded,  in  which  beasts 
of  prey  became  proportionally  bold.    Tigers  began  to 


104 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


infest  the  suburbs  of  Rangoon,  and  carry  off  cattle  and 
human  beings.  A  tiger  was  killed  even  in  the  streets  of 
the  city.  All  these  circumstances  impelled  the  mission- 
aries to  leave  Rangoon. 

It  was  now  no  longer  necessary  for  them  to  remain 
there  in  order  to  reach  the  native  Burmaus.  One  of  the 
results  of  the  war  was  that  the  British  had  wrested  from 
the  Burmans  a  large  part  of  their  seacoast,  the  Tenas- 
serim  provinces  having  been  ceded  to  them.  These 
embraced  a  strip  of  country  along  the  sea,  five  hundred 
miles  long,  and  from  forty  to  eighty  miles  wide.  This 
country  was  peopled  with  Burmans,  and  the  cruelty  of 
the  despot  at  Ava  was  sure  to  cause  a  large  overflow  of 
the  population  of  Burma  proper  into  it.  Here  the  Jud- 
sons  might  teach  the  new  religion  unmolested,  under  the 
protection  of  the  British  flag. 

But  where  upon  this  long  strip  of  ceded  territory 
should  the  mission  be  established  ?  Just  at  this  time  Mr. 
Judson  Avas  invited  by  Mr.  Crawford, -iihe  British  civil 
commissioner  of  the  new  province,  to  accompany  him  on 
an  exploring  expedition.  The  purpose  of  the  expedition 
was  to  ascertain  the  best  location  for  a  town,  which  was 
to  be  the  capital  of  the  new  territory — the  seat  of  govern- 
ment and  the  headquarters  of  the  army.  Mr.  Judson 's 
acquaintance  with  the  language  of  the  Burmaus  made 
him  an  invaluable  assistant  in  such  an  enterprise ;  and 
finally  Mr.  Judson  and  Mr.  Crawford  selected  as  tlie  site 
for  the  new  city  the  promontory  where  the  waters  of  the 
Salwen  empty  themselves  into  the  sea.  "  The  climate 
was  salubrious,  the  land  high  and  bold  to  the  seaward, 
and  the  view  of  the  distant  hills  of  Ballou  Island  very 
captivating."  The  town,  in  honor  of  the  Governor- 
General  of  India,  was  named  Amherst. 


LIFE  IN  AMHERST 


105 


On  July  2,  1826,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Judson  began  their 
missionary  life  in  Amherst.  They  had  the  four  faithful 
Rangoon  converts  as  the  nucleus  of  a  native  church,  and 
expected  soon  to  be  joined  by  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Wade  and 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Boardman.  They  were  among  the  first 
settlers,  and  made  their  home  right  in  the  very  jungle. 
There  was  a  prospect  that  the  new  town  would  have  a 
very  rapid  growth.  Three  hundred  Burmans  had  just 
arrived,  and  reported  that  three  thousand  more  were  on 
their  way  in  boats.  It  would  not  seem  strange  if  in  two 
or  three  years  a  city  of  twenty  or  thirty  thousand  in- 
habitants should  spring  up  on  this  salubrious,  wooded 
promontory. 

But  before  missionary  operations  were  fairly  begun, 
Mr.  Judson  was  compelled  reluctantly  to  visit  Ava.  the 
scene  of  his  imprisonment.  The  English  Government 
desired  to  negotiate  a  commercial  treaty  with  the  Burman 
king,  and  Mr.  Crawford,  the  civil  commissioner  of  tiie 
newly  ceded  provinces,  was  appointed  envoy.  He  invited 
Mr.  Judson  to  accompany  him  as  a  member  of  the  em- 
bassy. The  missionary's  profound  knowledge  of  the  Bur- 
man  language  and  character  well  qualified  him  for  the  deli- 
cate and  difficult  task  of  treating  with  the  court  at  Ava. 
At  first  he  firmly  declined.  He  had  no  relish  for  diplo- 
matic occupation,  and  he  longed  to  plunge  again  into  his 
own  work.  But  when  he  was  assured  that  if  he  would  go 
as  an  English  ambassador  every  effort  would  be  made  to 
secure  the  insertion  of  a  clause  in  the  treaty  granting  re- 
ligious liberty  to  the  Burmans,  so  that  the  whole  country 
would  be  thrown  open  to  the  gospel,  he  reluctantly  con- 
sented. The  stubborn  intolerance  of  the  native  govern- 
ment had  hitherto  been  the  chief  obstacle  in  his  mission- 
ary work,  and  religious  freedom  for  the  Burmese  was  a 


106 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


blessing  for  which  he  had  long  prayed  and  striven  in 
vain. 

This  step,  which  proved  to  be  a  most  unfortunate  one, 
was,  however,  the  result  of  the  most  mature  deliberation. 
Mr.  Judson,  with  the  English  embassy,  arrived  at  Ava 
September  30, 1826,  and  remained  there  about  two  months 
and  a  half.  This  period  embraces  one  of  the  saddest 
periods  of  his  life.  He  was  forced  to  witness  the  scene 
of  his  prolonged  sufferings  in  prison,  and  yet  was  sepa- 
rated from  the  wife  and  babe  who  had  shared  with  him 
those  horrible  experiences.  He  was  engaged  in  the 
tedious  and  uncongenial  task  of  wrestling  as  a  diplomat 
with  the  stupidity  and  intolerance  of  the  Burmese  court. 
He  soon  learned  that  the  king  would  on  no  terms  agree 
to  a  clause  in  the  treaty  granting  his  subjects  freedom  of 
worship.  And  to  crown  his  sorrows,  on  the  4th  of  No- 
vember there  was  placed  in  his  hands  a  sealed  letter,  con- 
taining the  intelligence  that  Mrs.  Judson  was  no  more. 

After  the  departure  of  her  husband  for  Amherst  she 
had  begun  her  work  with  good  heart.  She  built  a  little 
bamboo  dwelling-house  and  two  schoolhouses.  In  one 
of  these  she  gathered  ten  Burman  children,  who  were 
placed  under  the  instruction  of  faithful  Moung  Ing, 
while  she  herself  assembled  the  few  native  converts  for 
public  worship  every  Sunday. 

But  in  the  midst  of  these  sacred  toils  she  was  smitten 
with  fever.  Her  constitution,  undermined  by  the  hard- 
ships and  sufferings  which  she  had  endured,  could  not 
sustain  the  shock,  and  on  October  24th,  1826,  in  the 
thirty-seventh  year  of  her  age,  she  breathed  her  last. 
The  hands  so  full  of  holy  endeavors  were  destined  to  be 
suddenly  folded  for  rest.  She  died  apart  from  him  to 
whom  she  had  given  her  heart  in  her  girlhood,  whose 


LIFE  IN  AMHERST 


107 


footsteps  she  had  faithfully  followed  for  fourteen  years, 
over  land  and  sea,  through  trackless  jungles  and  strange 
crowded  cities,  sharing  his  studies  and  his  privations, 
illumining  his  hours  of  gloom  with  her  beaming  presence, 
and  with  a  heroism  and  fidelity  unparallelled  in  the  an- 
nals of  missions,  soothing  the  sufferings  of  his  imprison- 
ment. He  whom  she  had  thus  loved,  and  who,  from  his 
experience  of  Indian  fever,  might  have  l)een  able  to 
avert  the  fatal  stroke,  was  far  away  in  Ava.  No  mis- 
sionary was  with  her  when  she  died  to  speak  words  of 
Christian  consolation.  The  Burman  converts  like  chil- 
dren gathered  helplessly  and  broken-hearted  about  their 
white  mamma.  The  hands  of  strangers  smoothed  her 
dying  pillow,  and  their  ears  received  her  last  faint  wan- 
dering utterances.  Under  such  auspices  as  these  her 
white-winged  spirit  took  its  flight  to  the  brighter  scenes 
of  the  New  Jerusalem. 

Mr.  Judson  returned  to  Amherst,  January  24,  1827. 
The  native  Christians  greeted  him  with  the  voice  of 
lamentation,  for  his  presence  reminded  them  of  the 
great  loss  they  had  sustained  in  the  death  of  Mrs. 
Judson.  His  heart  was  desolate.  His  motherless  babe 
had  been  tenderly  cared  for  by  Mrs.  Wade.  Mi 
and  Mrs.  Wade  had  arrived  from  Calcutta  about 
two  months  before,  and  with  them  Mr.  Judson  made 
his  temporary  home.  Two  months  later  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Boardman  arrived,  so  that  the  missionary  force  was 
increased  to  five.  The  little  native  church  of  four  mem- 
bers was  however  reduced  by  the  departure  of  Moung 
Ing.  This  poor  fisherman,  who  had  been  Mrs.  Judson's 
faithful  companion  at  Ava,  had  of  his  own  accord  con- 
ceived the  purpose  of  undertaking  a  missionary  excursion 
to  his  late  fishing-grounds,  Tavoy  and  Mergui,  towns  south 


108 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


of  Amherst,  situated  on  the  Tenasserim  coast.  He  was 
henceforth  to  be  a  fisher  of  men. 

Mr.  Boardman,  in  speaking  of  his  first  meeting  with 
Mr.  Judson,  said :  "  He  looks  as  if  worn  out  with  suffer- 
ings and  sorrows."  He  did  not,  however,  neglect  his 
missionary  work.  He  met  the  Burmans  for  public  wor- 
ship on  Sunday,  and  each  day  at  lamily  worship  new 
inquirers  stole  in  and  were  taught  the  religion  of  Christ. 
He  was  also  busily  employed  in  revising  the  New  Testa- 
ment in  several  points  which  were  not  satisfactorily 
settled  when  the  translation  was  made ;  for  his  besetting 
sin  was,  as  he  himself  describes  it,  "  a  lust  for  finishing." 
He  completed  two  catechisms  for  the  use  of  Burman 
schools,  the  one  astronomical,  the  other  geographical, 
while  his  sorrowful  heart  sought  comfort  in  commencing 
a  translation  of  the  book  of  Psalms. 

Little  Maria  was  the  solace  of  his  studies.  But  she 
too  was  taken  from  him.  "On  April  24,  1827,"  he 
writes,  "my  little  daughter  Maria  breathed  her  last, 
aged  two  years  and  three  months,  and  her  emancipated 
spirit  fled,  I  trust,  to  the  arms  of  her  fond  mother." 

Mr.  Boardman,  who  had  only  just  arrived  from  Cal- 
cutta, constructed  a  coffin,  and  made  all  the  preparations 
for  the  funeral.  At  nine  o'clock  the  next  day  little 
Maria  was  placed  by  her  mother's  side  beneath  the 
hopia-tree.  "After  leaving  the  grave,"  Mr,  Boardman 
writes,  "  we  had  a  delightful  conversation  on  the  kind- 
ness and  tender  mercies  of  our  Heavenly  Father.  Brother 
Judson  seemed  carried  above  his  grief" 

And  so  at  the  age  of  thirty-nine  he  found  himself 
alone  in  the  world,  bereft  of  his  wife  and  two  children. 

The  time  had  now  come  when  the  little  mission  estab- 
lished at  Amherst,  with  such  doleful  omens,  was  to  be 


* 


LIFE  IN  AMHERST  109 

broken  up.  Amherst  was  beiug  rapidly  eclipsed  by  the 
town  of  Moulmeiu,  situated  on  the  coast  about  twenty- 
five  miles  farther  north,  at  the  very  mouth  of  the  Sahven. 
Moultnein  was  also  a  new  town,  the  settlers  building 
their  houses  right  in  a  thick  jungle.  But  within  a  year 
of  the  first  settlement,  while  the  number  of  houses  in  Am- 
herst amounted  to  two  hundred  and  thirty  and  the  popu- 
lation to  twelve  hundred,  the  population  of  Moulmeiu 
had  rapidly  swelled  to  twenty  thousand.  The  reason  for 
this  growth  was  an  unfortunate  misunderstanding  betweeu 
the  civil  commissioner,  Mr.  Crawford,  and  the  com- 
mander-in-chief. Sir  Archibald  Campbell, 

The  latter  made  Moulmeiu  instead  of  Amherst  the 
headquarters  of  his  army.  He  regarded  Moulmein  as  a 
more  strategical  position.  The  harbor  too,  of  Amherst, 
though  spacious  and  capable  of  accommodating  ships  of 
large  burden,  was  diflicult  of  access,  and  being  farther 
out  from  the  mouth  of  the  Salwen  than  Moulmein,  was 
dangerous  during  the  southwest  monsoon.  The  presence 
of  the  commander-in-chief  and  of  his  army  at  Moulmein, 
naturally  attracted  emigration  thither,  and  it  soon  be- 
came apparent  that  this  town  instead  of  Amherst  was  to 
be  the  metropolis  of  the  ceded  provinces  of  Tenuasserim. 
Accordingly  it  seemed  best  to  transfer  the  mission  to 
Moulmein.  On  May  28,  1827,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Boardman 
removed  thither  from  Amherst,  and  took  possession  of  a 
frail  bamboo  mission  house  situated  about  a  mile  south 
of  the  cantonments  of  the  English  army.  The  site  for 
the  mission  had  been  presented  by  Sir  Archibald  Camp- 
bell. "It  was  a  lonely  spot,  and  the  thick  jungle  close 
at  hand  was  the  haunt  of  wild  beasts  whose  howls 
Bounded  dismally  on  their  ears  in  the  night  time." 

On  the  10th  of  August  Mr.  Judson  left  Amherst,  and 


110  ADONIRAM  JUDSON 

the  little  enclosure,  the  hopia-tree,  aud  the  graves  which 
contained  the  mouldering  remains  of  those  who  were 
dearest  to  him  on  earth.  He  joined  the  Boardmans  at 
Moulmein,  aud  on  the  14th  of  November  was  followed 
by  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Wade,  and  the  native  Christians, 
together  with  thirteen  native  school  children.  Mah- 
men-la,  howev^er,  the  first  female  convert  among  the 
Burmaus,  had  already  been  laid  to  rest  by  the  side  of  her 
ivhite  mamma.  Sorrows  do  not  come  as  single  spies,  but 
by  battalions.  Six  months  intervened  between  the 
deaths  of  Mrs.  Judson  and  little  Maria,  and  within  three 
months  of  the  burial  of  the  latter,  even  before  leaving 
Amherst,  Mr.  Judson  heard  of  the  death  of  his  venerable 
father,  who  departed  this  life  at  Scituate,  Massachusetts, 
November  26,  1826,  in  the  seventy-fifth  year  of  his  age 


CHAPTER  IX 


LIFE  IN  MOULMEIN.  1827-1831 

MR.  JUDSON  was  now  forty  years  old.  He  had 
come  to  middle  life,  when  one  is  no  longer  youog, 
nor  yet  old — a  time  when  one  naturally  looks  both  before 
and  after.  At  nineteen  years  of  age  he  was  graduated  from 
college ;  at  twenty  he  was  converted ;  at  twenty-two  he 
resolved  to  become  a  missionary  to  the  heathen;  at 
twenty-four  he  was  married  to  Ann  Hasseltine  and  em- 
barked for  India  ;  at  twenty-five  he  arrived  in  Rangoon ; 
at  thirty-one  he  baptized  the  first  Burman  convert;  at 
thirty-five  he  completed  the  translation  of  the  New  Tes- 
tament into  Burmese ;  at  thirty-six  he  was  fettered  and 
imprisoned  at  Ava ;  at  thirty-eight  he  heard  the  news  of 
Mrs.  Judson's  death  at  Amherst ;  and  at  thirty-nine  buried 
his  little  Maria  by  the  side  of  her  mother  under  the 
hopia-tree.  He  found  himself  alone,  and  might  naturally 
have  asked  himself  the  question,  "  What  have  I  to  show 
for  what  I  have  done  and  suffered  ? "  Many  of  his  fondest 
hopes  had  been  shattered.  His  family  was  gone.  His 
little  church  at  Rangoon  was  all  but  extinct.  Very  few 
Burmans  had  learned  to  believe  in  the  living  God.  The 
deep  shadow  of  loneliness  pervades  all  of  his  letters 
written  during  this  period. 

His  sadness  was  intensified  by  the  slowness  of  American 
Christians  in  sending  on  reinforcements.  He  often  felt 
that  he  had  been  left  out  on  the  skirmish  line  almost 
alone.    A  letter  written  after  his  death,  by  his  surviving 

111 


112 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


widow,  shows  how  intense  was  his  longing  for  the  sympathy 
and  co-operation  of  his  brethren  at  home.  "  1  cannot 
regret  that  Dr.  Judson  has  gone.  I  believe  it  would  have 
broken  his  heart  to  see  Burma  open  and  such  a  lack  of 
missionary  spirit.  God  spared  him  the  trial,  and  though 
it  has  left  me  so  very  desolate,  I  feel  a  sort  of  gladness 
too,  when  I  think  of  it.  I  suppose  he  sees  it  there,  but 
he  can  understand  it  better." 

The  transition  period  from  Amherst  to  Moulmein  must 
have  been  a  time  of  crisis.  He  was  no  longer  stirred  by 
the  enthusiasm  of  youth  His  constitution  too  had  been 
impaired  by  the  prolonged  toi'tures  of  Ava  and  Oung- 
pen-la.  He  was  alone.  But  his  hardy  nature  did  not 
dissolve  in  the  alembic  of  despair.  While  at  times  he 
seemed  to  draw  perilously  near  the  verge  of  ascetic  piet- 
ism, his  healthy  spirit  soon  recovered  its  equilibrium.  He 
found  his  solace  in  new  activities,  and  in  a  more  intense 
self-denial.  His  piety  was  not  professional  or  obtrusive. 
Mrs.  E.  C.  Judson  writes : 

"  I  was  first  attracted  by  the  freshness,  the  originality, 
if  I  may  so  call  it,  of  his  goodness.  .  .  His  religion 
mingled  in  his  letters  generally,  and  in  his  conversation — 
a  little  silver  thread  that  it  is  impossible  to  disentangle." 

He  was  a  man  of  prayer.  His  habit  was  to  walk  while 
engaged  in  private  prayer.  One  who  knew  him  most  in- 
timately says  that  "  His  best  and  freest  time  for  medita- 
tion and  prayer  was  while  walking  rapidly  in  the  open 
air.  He,  however,  attended  to  the  duty  in  his  room,  and 
so  well  was  this  peculiarity  understood  that  when  the 
children  heard  a  somewhat  heavy,  quick,  but  well- 
measured  tread,  up  and  down  the  room,  they  would  say, 
'  Papa  is  praying.'  " 

During  this  period  of  sickness,  sorrow,  and  solitude,  big 


LIFE  IN  MOULMEIN 


113 


religion  carried  bim  to  great  extremes  of  self-denial.  He 
was  allowed  by  tbe  governor-general  of  India  five  thous- 
and two  bundred  rupees/  in  consideration  of  bis  services 
at  tbe  treaty  of  Yaudaboo  and  as  a  member  of  tbe  em- 
bassy to  Ava.  Besides  tbis,  tbe  presents  be  received 
while  at  Ava  amounted  to  two  thousand  rupees.^  All 
tbis  money  be  paid  into  tbe  treasury  of  tbe  mission.  Nor 
did  be  regard  this  as  a  donation.  His  view  was  that 
whatever  a  missionary  might  earn  by  such  necessary  and 
incidental  outside  work  belonged,  in  tbe  nature  of  the 
case,  to  tbe  Board  by  which  be  was  employed.  Yet  not 
only  did  he  cheerfully  give  up  these  perquisites,  but  at  a 
single  stroke  transferred  to  tbe  mission  all  of  his  private 
property,  the  slow  accumulation  of  many  years  of  thrift. 

But  love  of  money  was  not  the  only  worldly  appetite 
which  he  nailed  to  the  cross.  He  cut  to  the  quick  that 
passion  for  fame  which  Avas  an  inborn  trait,  and  which 
had  been  inordinately  stimulated  by  his  parents  during 
his  earliest  childhood.  His  overweening  ambition  re- 
ceived its  first  mortal  wound,  as  be  often  remarked,  when 
he  became  a  Baptist.  He  declined  the  honorary  degree 
of  Doctor  of  Divinity  conferred  upon  him  by  tbe  cor- 
poration of  Brown  University  in  1823. 

Tbe  difficulty  of  writing  bis  biography  is  enhanced  by 
tbe  fact  that  be  destroyed,  as  far  as  possible,  all  his  cor- 
respondence, including  a  letter  of  thanks  for  his  services 
from  tbe  governor-general  of  India,  and  other  papers  of 
a  similar  kind.  He  seemed  determined  that  bis  friends 
should  have  no  material  with  which  to  construct  eulo- 
giums.  He  wanted  to  do  his  work  and  then  forget  all 
about  it,  and  have  every  one  else  also  forget  it. 

Again,  Mr.  Judson  had  a  very  strong  relish  for  litera- 

>  Al.uut  82,600.  »  About  81,000. 

H 


114 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


tare  and  linguistic  research.  One  cannot  fail  to  observe 
the  poetic  gems,  original  and  quoted,  scattered  through 
his  correspondence.  The  Burman  literature,  with  its 
Buddhistic  books  and  its  fascinating  poetry,  was  a  vast 
mine  unexplored.  He  was  tempted  to  trace  the  winding 
j^aths  which  were  ever  opening  before  his  scholarly  mind, 
and  to  search  this  great  and  ancient  treasure-vault. 
Might  he  not  translate  into  English  some  beautiful  frag- 
ments of  this  literature,  and  so  enkindle  in  some  of  the 
highly  organized  minds  of  the  Western  world  a  greater 
interest  in  foreign  missions  ?  But  no.  He  turned  reso- 
lutely away  from  the  alluring  prospects  He  was  deter- 
mined not  to  know  anything  among  the  Burmans  save 
Jesus  Christ  and  him  crucified.  As  a  missionary  he  was 
unwilling  to  disperse  his  mental  forces  over  the  wide  sur- 
face of  literary  and  philosophical  pursuits,  but  insisted  on 
moving  along  the  narrow  and  divinely  appointed  groove 
of  unfolding  the  word  of  God  and  meting  it  out  to  suit 
the  wants  of  perishing  man. 

But  perhaps  the  severest  sacrifice  of  all  was  the  denial 
of  his  social  instincts.  It  was  not  because  he  was  unen- 
dowed with  social  sensibilities  that  he  so  cut  himself  oflT 
from  the  State  or  conventional  dinner,  and  from  a  fashion- 
able intercourse  with  Sir  Archibald  Campbell,  and  other 
cultivated  Englishmen,  as  to  incur  the  stigma  of  being 
called  "  odd."  He  did  not  withdraw  to  his  hermitage  in 
the  jungle  because  he  was  a  fierce  and  sullen  fanatic.  On 
the  contrary,  one  who  knew  him  most  intimately  says 
that  "  Perhaps  his  most  remarkable  characteristic  to  a 
superficial  observer  was  the  extent  and  thorough  gerial 
nature  of  his  sociableness."  Indeed,  there  was  a  spice 
of  truth  in  the  remark  sneeringly  made  by  a  fashion- 
able woman  that  "  Judson  abstained  from  society  not  from 


LIFE  IN  MOULMEIN 


115 


principle,  but  from  cowardice — he  was  like  the  drunkard 
who  was  afraid  to  taste  lest  he  should  not  know  when  to 
stop."  "His  ready  humor,"  Mrs.  Judson  writes,  "his 
aptness  at  illustration,  his  free  flow  of  generous,  gentle- 
manly feeling  made  his  conversation  peculiarly  brilliant 
and  attractive,  and  such  interchanges  of  thought  and 
feeling  were  his  delight."  "  He  was  not,"  she  adds,  "  a 
born  angel,  shut  without  the  pale  of  humanity  by  his  re- 
ligion." His  was  not  the  stern,  unsesthetic  nature  of  the 
great  Reformer  and  theologian  who,  though  he  lived  his 
life  on  the  lake  of  Geneva,  nowhere  betrays  in  his 
voluminous  writings  that  he  was  at  all  conscious  of  the 
beautiful  panorama  spread  out  before  him.  He  was,  as 
has  been  said  of  another,  "  a  creature  who  entered  into 
every  one's  feelings,  and  could  take  the  pressure  of  their 
thought  instead  of  urging  his  own  with  iron  resistance." 
He  was,  in  truth, 

.  .  .  Not  too  bright  or  good 

For  human  nature's  daily  food; 

For  transient  sorrows,  simple  wiles, 

Praise,  blame,  love,  kisses,  tears,  and  smiles. 

The  author,  among  his  own  scanty  childhood  recollec- 
tions of  his  father,  well  remembers  the  tenderness  with 
which  he  nursed  his  sick  boy ;  and  a  missionary  associate 
says :  "  He  had  a  peculiarly  fascinating  way  of  endear- 
ing himself  to  everybody  whose  hearts  were  open  to  his 
kindness."    Mrs.  E.  C.  Judson  writes : 

"  He  was  always  planning  pleasant  little  surprises  for 
family  and  neighbors,  and  kept  up  through  his  married 
life  those  little  lover-like  attentions  which  I  believe  hus- 
bands are  apt  to  forget.  There  was,  and  always  must 
have  been,  a  kind  of  romance  about  him  (you  will  under- 
stand I  use  the  word  italicized  for  want  of  a  better). 


116 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


which  prevented  every-day  life  with  him  from  ever  being 
common-place.  If  he  went  out  before  I  was  awake  in 
the  morning,  very  likely  some  pretty  message  would  be 
pinned  to  my  mosquito  curtain.  If  he  was  obliged  to 
stay  at  a  business  meeting  or  any  such  place  longer  than 
he  thought  I  expected,  and  often  when  he  did  not  stay 
over  the  time,  some  little  penciled  line  that  he  could  trace 
without  attracting  attention,  would  be  dispatched  to  me. 
And  often  when  he  sat  at  his  study  table,  something  droll 
or  tender  or  encouraging  or  suggestive  of  thought,  pen- 
ciled on  a  broken  scrap  of  paper,  sometimes  the  margin 
of  a  newspaper,  was  every  little  while  finding  its  way  to 
my  room.  .  .  He  was  always  earnest,  enthusiastic,  sympa- 
thizing even  in  the  smallest  trifles,  tender,  delicate,  and 
considerate — never  moody,  as  he  has  sometimes  been  de- 
scribed, but  equally  communicative,  whether  sad  or 
cheerful,  ,  .  He  was  always,  even  in  his  playfulness, 
intellectual ;  and  the  more  familiar,  the  more  elevated," 

The  little  thoughtful  attentions  which  he  was  continu- 
ally paying  to  his  fellow-missionaries,  betrayed  with  what 
heartiness  he  entered  into  all  their  joys  and  sorrows. 
His  friends,  the  Bennetts,  had  sent  their  children  to 
America,  One  day  Mr.  Judson  surprised  them  with  a 
present  of  the  portraits  of  their  absent  little  ones,  for 
which  he  had  himself  sent  to  this  country. 

He  had  a  remarkable  gift  for  comforting  people,  and 
was  indeed  a  sou  of  consolation.  A  lady  to  whom  he 
paid  a  visit  of  condolence  upon  the  death  of  her  mother 
wrote  to  her  friend :  "  He  must  have  been  peculiarly 
sympathetic  himself,  or  he  could  not  have  entered  into 
every  one's  sorrows  so  easily."  If  any  one  was  in  trouble, 
he  was  sure  to  be  there.  Every  tone  of  his  voice  seemed 
calculated  to  touch  the  innermost  chord  of  a  troubled  heart. 


LIFE  IN  MOULMEIN 


117 


We  left  Mr.  Judson,  when  we  turned  aside  to  look  at 
his  character,  by  the  freshly  made  graves  of  his  wife  and 
child  at  Amherst.  Amherst  and  Moulmein,  situated 
about  twenty-five  miles  apart  upon  the  coast  of  a  newly 
settled  province,  were  competing  for  the  honor  of  being 
the  metropolis  of  British  Burma.  They  were  both 
planted  in  the  jungle,  dependent  for  their  growth  upon 
the  tide  of  population  which  kept  streaming  away  from 
the  oppressions  of  Barman  despotism  toward  the  enlight- 
ened and  liberal  English  rule  that  prevailed  throughout 
the  Tenasserim  provinces.  The  scale,  as  has  already 
been  stated,  was  turned  in  favor  of  Moulmein,  by  the  fact 
that  Sir  Archibald  Campbell  had  chosen  it  as  the  head- 
quarters of  his  army.  It  consequently  grew  into  a  large 
city  with  marvelous  rapidity,  while  Amherst  dwindled 
into  insignificance. 

The  missionaries  at  first  thought  it  best  to  have  two 
stations,  one  at  Amherst  and  the  other  at  Moulmein — 
the  Wades  to  hold  the  ground  in  the  former  place,  and 
the  Boardmans  in  the  latter,  while  Mr.  Judson  should 
move  backward  and  forward  between  the  two  points. 
But  they  soon  decided  not  to  attempt  to  keep  their  hold 
on  Amherst,  but  to  concentrate  all  their  forces  in  Moul- 
mein. This  town,  as  has  been  said,  was  situated  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Salwen,  on  its  west  bank.  It  consisted 
principally  of  one  street  which  extended  along  the  river 
front  about  two  miles.  Behind  the  city  was  a  long  range 
of  hills,  dotted  here  and  there  with  the  graceful  pagoda. 
In  front  swept  the  broad  swift  Salwen,  "in  which  an 
English  sloop-of-war  was  lying  at  anchor,  and  curiously 
shaped  Indian  boats  were  passing  to  and  fro  with  each 
changing  tide."  Directly  across  the  river  lay  the  prov- 
ince of  Martaban,  still  under  Burman  rule,  the  secure 


118 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


haunt  of  robbers  and  pirates ;  while  far  off  to  the  seaward 
one  could  catch  a  glimpse  of  the  high  hills  of  Ballou 
Island. 

The  Boardmans  were  the  first  to  remove  to  Moulmein, 
and  were  soon  followed  by  the  Wades,  while  Mr.  Judson 
came  last.  We  find  in  Mr.  Boardman's  journal,  under 
date  of  August  12,  1827,  the  following  minute : 

"The  Buf-man  merchant  to  whom  I  gave  the  books 
called  on  me  yesterday  for  further  information  on  some 
point  which  he  did  not  fully  understand.  While  he  was 
here  the  head  man  of  the  village  also  came ;  and  these 
two  together,  with  our  Burman  teacher,  who  seems  to  be 
inquiring,  entered  into  some  particular  discussion  of 
Christian  history  and  doctrine.  In  the  midst  of  this  dis- 
cussion, how  great  was  my  joy  on  beholding  Mr.  Judson 
approaching  the  house.  It  is  now  probable  that  we  shall 
all  be  settled  together  at  this  place." 

The  mission  house  had  been  erected  by  the  Boardmans 
at  the  expense  of  the  mission,  upon  ground  given  by  Sir 
Archibald  Campbell.  It  was  situated  about  a  mile  south 
of  the  English  barracks,  on  a  gentle  westerly  and  south- 
erly declivity,  so  that  it  commanded  a  view  of  the  river 
and  the  sea.  It  contained  three  rooms  fifteen  feet  square, 
and  a  veranda  on  all  sides,  but  enclosed  on  thi'ee  sides 
for  a  study,  store  room,  dressing  room,  etc.  The  general 
had  offered  the  missionaries  a  site  within  the  cantonments, 
but  they  chose  rather  to  be  where  they  could  come  into 
closer  and  more  direct  contact  with  the  natives.  This, 
however,  exposed  them  landward  to  tigers,  and  riverward 
to  robbers  from  Martaban. 

It  was  at  this  exposed  spot  that  the  Judsons,  the 
Boardmans,  and  the  Wades  mustered  their  forces,  and 
stood  prepared  to  take  advantage  of  the  inflowing  tide 


LIFE  IN  MOULMEIN 


119 


of  Burmese  population.  They  took  with  them  from 
Amherst  their  whole  little  flock  of  native  converts  and 
inquirers,  namely,  Moung  Shwa-ba,  Moung  Ing,  jMoung 
Myat-poo,  Mah  Doke,  with  her  husband,  Moung  Dwah, 
and  Ko  Thah-byu,  who  afterward  became  the  apostle 
to  the  Karens.  Seventeen  of  the  female  scholars  al.<o 
accompanied  them,  besides  the  two  little  boys  left  mother- 
less by  the  lamented  Mah  Men-la. 

The  missionaries  and  their  converts  at  once  began  zayat 
work.  There  were  soon  in  Moulmein  four  widely  sepa- 
rated centers  of  gospel  influence,  namely:  The  mission 
house  where  Mr.  Boardman  labored  ;  Mr.  Judson's  zayat, 
about  two  miles  and  a  half  north  of  the  mission  premises, 
in  a  very  populous  part  of  the  town  ("  a  little  shed  project- 
ing into  one  of  the  dirtiest,  noisiest  streets  of  the  place  ")  ; 
Mr.  Wade's  zayat,  out  in  the  country,  about  half  a  mile 
south  of  the  mission  house  ;  and,  besides,  a  reading  zayat, 
where  Moung  Shwa-ba  and  Moung  Ing  alternately  read 
the  Scriptures  to  all  the  passers-by.  At  each  of  these 
stations  public  worship  was  held,  followed  by  close  per- 
sonal conversation  with  any  who  desired  to  become 
acquainted  with  the  new  religion.  Nor  did  the  word 
thus  preached  return  void.  They  soon  had  the  happi- 
ness of  baptizing  Moung  Dwah,  one  of  the  inquirers  who 
had  accompanied  them  from  Amherst,  and  others  speedily 
followed  his  example. 

But  not  only  was  the  zayat  work  crowned  with  success, 
the  school  work  was  not  less  effective.  The  school  of  girls 
which  had  been  transplanted  from  Amherst  increased  in 
size  and  efficiency  under  the  superintendence  of  Mrs.  Wade 
and  Mrs.  Boardman,  who  not  only  taught  the  children, 
but  imparted  religious  instruction  to  the  Burman  women. 
The  tireless  Boardman  also  opened  a  school  for  boys. 


120 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


Mr.  Judson  speaks  joyously  of  an  incipient  revival  in  the 
girls'  school,  "similar  to  those  glorious  revivals  which 
distinguish  our  own  beloved  laud." 

But  amid  the  cares  and  toils  of  beginning  a  missionary 
enterprise  in  Moulmein,  Mr.  Judson  did  not  remit  his 
literary  labors.  The  odd  moments  of  time  left  from 
zayat  work  and  school  work  were  filled  with  the  work  of 
translation.  Even  before  leaving  Amherst  he  had  em- 
barked upon  the  prodigious  task  of  trauskiting  the  Old 
Testament  into  Burmese.  He  had  begun  with  the 
Psalms.  After  the  death  of  his  wife  and  child  his  sor- 
rowing heart  instinctively  turned  for  consolation  to  "  the 
prayers  of  David,  the  son  of  Jesse." 

While  thus  absorbed  in  the  work  of  preaching  and 
teaching  and  translating  at  Moulmein,  he  was  not  forget- 
ful of  the  smouldering  campfires  he  had  left  behind  him 
at  Rangoon  and  Amherst.  At  Rangoon  especially,  where 
he  had  first  unfurled  the  banner  of  the  Christ,  and  whence 
he  had  been  rudely  driven  by  the  intolerant  spirit  of  the 
king  of  Ava,  a  native  church  was  speedily  reorganized 
under  a  Burman  pastor,  Ko  Thah-a,  one  of  the  original 
Rangoon  converts. 

Ko  Thah-a  visited  Mr.  Judson  at  Moulmein  in  order 
to  be  instructed  as  to  what  he  should  do  with  those  whom 
he  had  persuaded  to  accept  of  Christ,  and  who  wished  to 
be  baptized.  It  was  thought  best  to  ordain  him  as  pastor 
of  the  church  in  Rangoon. 

What  a  stubborn  vitality  there  is  in  that  seminal  divine 
idea — a  local  church.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Judson  formed  such 
a  church,  when  in  1813  they  made  their  home  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Irawadi,  and  all  by  themselves  shared  in 
that  Holy  Supper  which  was  instituted  to  commemorate 
the  Saviour's  dying  love.    The  church  of  two  slowly  grew 


LIFE  IN  MOULMEIN 


121 


into  a  church  of  twenty.  Then  came  the  war,  and  the 
long  imprisonment  of  the  pastor  at  Ava.  The  church 
was  hewed  to  the  ground.  Only  four  members  couhl  be 
found,  and  these  were  transplanted  to  Amherst.  More 
than  two  years  later  Ko  Thah-a,  who  had  been  lost  sight 
of  in  the  interior  of  the  country,  makes  his  appearance 
in  JMoulmein.  He  has  all  along  been  secretly  preaching 
the  good  news,  and  now  he  wants  to  go  back  to  Rangoon 
and  baptize  the  converts  whom  he  has  won.  Out  of  tiie 
stump  of  the  tree  cut  down  there  springs  a  shoot  which 
has  bloomed  and  flourished  even  to  the  present  time. 
The  Rangoon  mission  of  1892  embraces  eighty-six 
churches,  and  four  thousand  five  hundred  and  sixty-nine 
members.  "  There  shall  be  a  handful  of  corn  in  the 
earth  upon  the  top  of  the  mountains ;  the  fruit  thereof 
shall  shake  like  Lebanon." 

Ko  Thah-a,  the  first  Christian  pastor  among  the 
Burmans,  proved  to  be  an  able  minister.  Again  and 
again  he  sent  to  Moulniein  the  cheering  news  of  conver- 
sions and  baptisms ;  and  when,  a  year  and  a  half  after 
his  ordination,  Mr.  Judson  visited  him  at  Rangoon  and 
invited  him  to  go  on  a  missionary  tour  up  the  country, 
he  declined,  "  on  account  of  having  so  many  irons  in  the 
fire " — that  is,  hopeful  inquirers — that  he  must  stay  to 
bring  forward  and  baptize.  And  Mr.  Judson  adds,  "  He 
is  as  solicitious  and  busy  as  a  hen  pressing  about  her 
chickens.  It  is  quite  refreshing  to  hear  him  talk  on  the 
subject,  and  see  what  a  nice,  careful  old  shepherd  he 
makes.  The  Lord  bless  his  soul  and  the  souls  of  his 
flock !  " 

Neither  did  Mr.  Judson  forget  the  deserted  mission 
field  at  Amherst,  where  lay  the  precious  dust  of  his  wife 
and  child.    Like  the  Apostle  Paul,  he  felt  the  deepest 


122 


ADONIEAM  JUDSON 


solicitude  for  the  spiritual  welfare  of  the  converts  whom 
he  had  left  along  the  track  behind  him.  Moung  Ing  was 
ordained  and  sent  to  be  pastor  of  the  disciples  at  Am- 
herst. 

Moung  Ing,  however,  though  diligent  and  faithful  and 
extremely  desirous  of  doing  good,  seems  to  have  proved 
rather  a  failure  as  a  minister.  The  prospects  at  Amherst 
darkened.  One  feels  his  heart  drawn  out  toward  the  poor 
fisherman,  Moung  Ing,  one  of  the  very  earliest  Burman 
converts,  Mrs.  Judson's  only  dependence  at  Ava  and 
Oung-pen-la — the  first  bearer  of  the  gospel  to  the  Tavo- 
yans,  and  yet  a  man  whose  mission  in  this  world,  in  spite 
of  zeal,  fidelity,  and  untiring  industry,  seemed  to  be  ever 
to  fail. 

But  the  time  had  now  come  when  this  little  company 
of  missionaries  at  Moulmein  had  to  be  broken  up.  Jud- 
son,  Boardman,  and  Wade — an  illustrious  triumvirate — 
could  not  long  expect  to  work  together  in  the  same  place. 
This  would  be  too  great  a  concentration  of  forces  at  one 
point.  The  gospel  light  must  be  more  widely  dispersed 
through  the  thick  gloom  of  paganism.  The  Boardm£.ns 
were  the  first  to  go,  though  the  parting  with  their  mission- 
ary associates  was  attended  with  the  keenest  suflfering. 
besides,  they  had  ox'iginated  the  mission  at  Moulmein, 
and  it  was  at  a  peculiar  sacrifice  that  they  pressed  into 
the  regions  beyond.  They  chose  Tavoy  as  their  field  of 
work.  It  seemed  out  of  the  question  to  assail  Burma 
proper ;  and  on  the  long  coast  of  the  ceded  provinces, 
Amherst  having  dwindled  into  insignificance,  Tavoy  was 
the  only  important  point  within  a  hundred  and  fifty  miles. 
If  they  went  to  Arracan,  British  territory  situated  on  the 
other  side  of  Burma  proper,  they  would  be  too  far  a-^'av 
to  meet  with  the  other  missionaries  for  such  occasional 


LIFE  IN  MOULMEIN 


123 


consultation  and  concert  of  prayer  as  seemed  advisable 
to  the  Board  at  home.  Accordingly,  on  the  29th  of 
March,  1828,  when  the  missionaries  had  experienced  for 
only  seven  months  the  joy  of  laboring  together  in  Moul- 
mein,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Boardman,  with  their  little  family, 
set  sail  for  Tavoy.  They  were  accompanied  by  a  young 
Siamese  convert,  Moung  Shway-pweu,  by  a  Karen,  Ko 
Thah-byu — subsequently  the  renowned  apostle  to  the 
Karens — and  by  four  of  the  native  schoolboys.  With 
this  little  group  of  disciples,  Mr.  Boardman  began  that 
brief  and  heroic  campaign  among  the  Karens  which  has 
made  his  name  so  illustrious  in  the  annals  of  missions. 

On  the  15th  of  December,  1829,  Mr.  Judson  received 
news  of  the  death  at  Washington  of  his  brother  Elnathan, 
with  whom  he  had  prayed  so  many  years  before  by  the 
roadside  on  his  way  from  Plymouth  to  Boston.  The  letter 
that  brought  him  these  sad  tidings  assured  him  also  that 
the  wayside  prayer  had  been  answered. 

On  the  arrival  at  JMoulmein  of  two  new  missionaries, 
the  printer,  Mr.  Cephas  Bennett,  and  his  wife,  it  seemed 
best  that  the  policy  of  dispersion  should  be  still  more 
rigorously  pursued.  Mr.  Judson  never  approved  of  tlie 
concentration  of  missionaries  at  any  one  station. 

He  believed  in  multiplying  the  centers  of  light.  It 
might  be  well  for  a  new  missionary  upon  his  first  arrival 
to  be  kept  in  training  at  some  long-established  post  in 
association  with  experienced  laborers,  but  then  his  ulti- 
mate aim  should  be  to  plunge  alone  into  the  thickest  of 
heathenism. 

Besides,  the  time  had  now  come  to  make  a  new  attempt 
to  enter  Burma  proper.  Accordingly,  on  February  21, 
1830,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Wade  removed  to  Rangoon,  Mr. 
Judsou's  old  field,  whei'e  the  newly  ordained  jNIoung 


124 


ADONIEAM  JUDSON 


Thah-a  and  Moung  Ing  were  laboring.  The  pain  of 
parting  was  alleviated  by  the  hope  which  Mr.  Judson 
cherished  of  joining  them  again  at  Rangoon,  with  the 
purpose  of  once  more  penetrating  the  valley  of  the  Ira- 
wadi  in  the  direction  of  Ava. 

He  could  not  remain  content  at  Moulmein.  He  was 
not  satisfied  with  founding  two  or  three  missions  on  the 
outermost  edge  of  British  Burma.  He  longed  to  penetrate 
Burma  proper  again,  and  establish  a  line  of  mission  sta- 
tions in  the  Irawadi  valley,  that  arterial  channel  through 
which  the  tide  of  Burmese  population  surged.  Mr.  Wade 
had  gone  before  simply  as  an  avant-courexir.  His  going 
to  Rangoon  was  only  a  part  of  a  more  general  movement. 
Leaving  Moulmein  in  charge  of  Mr.  Boardman,  who  had 
been  temporarily  recalled  from  Tavoy,  Mr.  Judson  parted 
with  him  and  the  new-comers,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Bennett,  on 
April  26, 1830,  and  set  sail  for  Rangoon,  where  he  arrived 
six  days  later. 

He  spent  only  a  few  days  with  Mr.  Wade  in  Rangoon. 
Then,  in  the  company  of  five  native  disciples,  he  pro- 
ceeded by  boat  to  Prome,  an  ancient  city  situated  on  the 
Irawadi  about  one  hundred  and  seventy  miles  from  the 
mouth. 

This  brave  effort,  however,  to  plant  Christianity  at 
Prome,  in  the  very  interior  of  the  Burman  empire,  the 
half-way  place  between  Rangoon  and  Ava,  proved  a  com- 
plete failure.  Mr.  Judson  preached  the  gospel  and  dis- 
tributed tracts  all  the  way  up  the  river,  and  for  three 
months  he  and  his  disciples  labored  faithfully  in  Prome. 
He  occupied  daily  an  old  tumbledown  zayat  at  tlie  foot 
of  the  great  pagoda,  Shway  Landau,  and  thousands  heard 
the  gospel  from  his  lips.  But  suddenly  the  zayat  was  de- 
serted.   He  met  with  cold  and  rude  treatment  in  the 


LIFE  IN  MOULMEIN 


125 


streets.  The  dogs  were  allowed  to  bark  at  him  unmolested. 
It  was  rumored  that  the  king  at  Ava  was  displeased  that 
the  Burman  religion  should  be  assailed  in  the  very  heart 
of  bis  empire,  and  that  he  had  given  orders  that  JNIr. 
Judson  should  be  required  to  depart  from  Burma.  It 
subsequently  transpired  that  the  king  himself  was  in 
reality  kindly  disposed  toward  Mr.  Judson.  He  had  in- 
quired some  time  before  where  Mr.  Judson  was,  and  when 
told  that  he  was  in  Moulmein,  he  said :  "  Why  does  he 
not  come  here  ?  He  is  a  good  man,  and  would,  if  he  were 
here,  teach  and  discipline  my  ministers  and  make  better 
men  of  them."  The  ejection  of  Mi'.  Judson  from  Burma 
was  a  trick  on  the  part  of  these  very  prime  ministers. 
They  hated  all  foreign  intrusion,  and  represented  to  Major 
Burney,  the  English  ambassador  at  Ava,  that  the  king 
was  very  much  displeased  with  Mr.  Judson's  attempt  to 
introduce  Christianity  into  the  empire. 

And  so  Mr.  Judson  was  forced  sadly  and  reluctantly 
to  abandon  his  project  of  carrying  the  gospel  into  Central 
Burma.  Although  he  was  foiled  in  this  effort,  yet  he  did 
not  withdraw  immediately  to  Moulmein,  but  remained  for 
almost  a  year  laboring  at  Rangoon,  situated  just  within 
the  gate  of  the  empire.  He  retreated  only  step  by  step 
from  before  Burman  intolerance,  disputing  every  inch  of 
the  ground. 

Just  at  this  time  the  whole  land  seemed  peculiarly 
pervaded  by  a  spirit  of  religious  thirst.  Everybody  was 
curious  to  know  about  this  new  religion.  The  people 
seemed  to  catch  eagerly  at  every  scrap  of  information  re- 
lating to  Christianity.  The  ears  of  the  heathen,  to  use 
tbeir  own  vivid  expression,  had  become  thinner.  Mr. 
Judson's  house  was  thronged  with  inquirers.  While  he 
was  not  permitted  in  person  to  preach  in  the  interior  of 


126 


ADONIEAM  JUDSON 


the  country,  yet  iu  Rangoon  he  freely  distributed  tracts 
and  translations  of  the  Scriptures,  which  sped  on  their 
way  far  up  the  Irawadi  toward  Ava.  He  thought  it 
wise  to  take  advantage  of  this  floodtide  of  eager  curiosity. 
A  nation  has  its  moods  as  well  as  an  individual.  Waste- 
ful indolence  might  indeed  substitute  the  lavish  and  in- 
discriminate use  of  printer's  ink  for  the  personal  preaching 
of  the  gospel  by  the  living  voice.  But,  carefully  watch- 
ing the  pulse  of  Burman  life,  he  believed  that  at  last  the 
time  had  come  when  the  printed  page  might  be  made  a 
mighty  engine  for  good,  and  could  not  be  too  freely  used. 
Hence,  to  Mr.  Bennett,  the  printer,  and  to  the  other  mis- 
sionaries at  Moulmein,  he  sent  agonizing  appeals  for  more 
tracts,  the  echoes  of  which  were  wafted  even  to  our  own 
land. 

And  while  thus  striving  to  satisfy  the  thirst  of  the 
Burmans  for  religious  knowledge,  he  did  not  intermit  his 
long  and  laborious  task  of  translating  the  Scriptures.  He 
shut  himself  up  in  the  garret  of  the  mission-house,  leaving 
his  Burman  associates  to  deal  with  the  inquirers  below, 
only  referring  to  him  the  more  important  cases.  In  his 
seclusion  he  made  such  long  strides  in  his  work  that,  at 
the  close  of  his  stay  at  Rangoon,  he  wrote  in  his  journal : 
"  1831,  July  19.  Finished  the  translation  of  Genesis, 
twenty  chapters  of  Exodus,  Psalms,  Solomon's  Song, 
Isaiah,  and  Daniel  " 

It  was  about  this  time  that  the  Mission  Board  in  this 
country  sent  him  an  earnest  and  affectionate  invitation 
to  revisit  his  native  land.  He  was  about  forty-two  years 
old,  and  had  been  absent  from  America  eighteen  years. 
His  health  was  shattered.  His  family  he  had  laid  in  the 
grave.  He  said  several  years  later  that  he  had  never 
seen  a  ship  sail  out  of  the  port  of  Moulmein  bound  for 


LIFE  IN  MOULMEIN 


127 


England  or  America  without  an  almost  irrepressible  in- 
clination to  get  on  board  and  visit  again  the  home  of  his 
boyhood.  And  yet  in  reply  to  this  urgent  invitation 
from  Lis  brethren,  he  wrote  that  he  would  "not  feel  justi- 
fied in  accepting  their  invitation  to  return  home." 

While  in  Rangoon  he  received  the  heavy  tidings  that 
the  beloved  Boardman  had  died  in  the  jungles  back  of 
Tavoy.  Sorrow  had  come  upon  the  Boardman  family  in 
quick  and  uninterrupted  succession.  The  death  of  a  lit- 
tle daughter,  Sarah,  was  followed  by  the  revolt  of  Tavoy, 
and  during  this  brief  uprising  of  the  Biirmans  against 
their  masters,  Mr.  Boardman  had  been  subjected  to  an 
exposure  and  hardship  such  as  his  consumptive  habit 
was  ill  able  to  endure.  From  that  time  he  visibly  de- 
clined. To  use  Mrs.  E.  C.  Judson's  words :  "  His  cheeks 
were  a  little  more  hollow,  and  the  color  on  them  more 
flickering;  his  eyes  were  brighter,  and  seemingly  more 
deeply  set  beneath  the  brow,  and  immediately  below 
them  was  a  faint,  indistinct  arc  of  mingled  ash  and  pur- 
ple like  the  shadow  of  a  faded  leaf ;  his  lips  were  some- 
times of  a  clayey  pallor,  and  sometimes  they  glowed  with 
crimson ;  and  his  fingers  were  long,  and  the  hands  of  a 
partially  transparent  thinness." 

The  newly  appointed  missionary  to  the  Karens,  Mr. 
Mason,  arrived  in  Tavoy  June  3,  1831.  "  On  the  jetty," 
he  wrote,  "  reclining  helplessly  in  the  chair  which  liad 
served  the  purpose  of  a  carriage,  a  pale,  worn-out  man, 
with  the  characters  of  death  in  his  countenance,  waited 
to  welcome  his  successor."  Mr.  Boardman  was  prepar- 
ing to  take  a  tour  into  the  jungle  in  order  to  baptize 
some  recent  Karen  converts.  His  emaciated  form  was  to 
be  carried  on  a  litter  several  days'  journey  into  the  wil- 
derness.   Remonstrance  was  unvailing ;  for  he  had  set  his 


128 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


heart  upon  accomplishing  his  purpose.  Besides,  it  was 
thought  that  the  change  of  air  might  do  him  good. 
Even  after  setting  out,  he  was  advised  to  return ;  but  his 
reply  was:  "The  cause  of  God  is  of  more  importance 
than  my  health,  and  if  I  return  now,  our  whole  object 
will  be  defeated.  I  want  to  see  the  work  of  the  Lord  go 
on." 

After  a  long  journey  of  several  days  through  the 
wilderness,  he  witnessed  the  baptism  of  thirty-four 
Karens,  and  died  in  the  heart  of  the  jungle  sustained  by 
the  presence  of  the  native  disciples,  his  infant  son,  and 
devoted  wife,  who  in  describing  the  scene  writes  as 
follows : 

"With  the  love-light  in  his  eyes, 
Mute  the  dying  teacher  lies. 
It  is  finished.    Bear  him  back ! 
Haste  along  the  jungle  track  1 
See  the  lid  uplifting  now — 
See  the  glory  on  his  brow. 

It  is  finished.    Wood  and  glen 
Sigh  their  mournful,  meek  Amen. 
'Mid  that  circle,  sorrow  spanned, 
Clasping  close  an  icy  hand, 
Lo!  the  midnight  watcher  wan, 
"Waiting  yet  another  dawn. 

When  Mrs.  Boardman  with  her  son  George,  about  two 
years  and  a  half  old,  wei'e  thus  suddenly  left  in  all  the 
perplexity  and  desolation  of  widowhood  and  fatherless- 
ness,  she  received  from  Mr.  Judson  the  following  words  of 
tenderest  consolation  and  counsel : 

"  Rangoon,  March  4,  1831. 
"  My  Dear  Sister  : — You  are  now  drinking  the 
bitter  cup  whose  dregs  I  am  somewhat  acquainted  with. 


LIFE  IN  MOULMEIN 


129 


And  though,  for  some  time,  you  have  been  aware  of  its 
approach,  I  venture  to  say  that  it  is  far  bitterer  than  you 
expected.  It  is  common  for  persons  in  your  situation  to 
refuse  all  consolation,  to  cling  to  the  dead,  and  to  fear 
that  they  shall  too  soon  forget  the  dear  object  of  their 
aflections.  But  don't  be  concerned.  I  can  assure  you 
that  months  and  months  of  heartrending  anguish  are  be- 
fore you,  whether  you  will  or  not.  I  can  only  advise 
you  to  take  the  cup  with  both  hands,  and  sit  down  quietly 
to  the  bitter  repast  which  God  has  appointed  for  your 
sanctification.  As  to  your  beloved,  you  know  that  all 
his  tears  are  wiped  away,  and  that  the  diadem  which 
encircles  his  brow  outshines  the  sun.  Little  Sarah  and 
the  other  have  again  found  their  father ;  not  the  frail, 
sinful  mortal  that  they  left  the  earth,  but  an  immortal 
saint,  a  magnificent,  majestic  king.  What  more  can  you 
desire  for  them  ?  AVhile  therefore  your  tears  flow,  let  a 
due  proportion  be  tears  of  joy.  Yet  take  the  bitter  cup 
with  both  hands,  and  sit  down  to  your  repast.  You  will 
soon  learn  a  secret,  that  there  is  sweetness  at  the  bottom. 
You  will  find  the  sweetest  cup  that  you  ever  tasted  in  all 
your  life.  You  will  find  heaven  coming  near  to  you, 
and  familiarity  with  your  husband's  voice  will  be  a  con- 
necting link,  drawing  you  almost  within  the  sphere  of 
celestial  music." 


I 


CHAPTER  X 


LIFE  IN  MOULMEiN  {Continued).  1831-1845 

IT  now  became  Mr.  Judson's  duty  to  return  to  Moul- 
mein.  He  had  been  absent  thirteen  months.  The 
first  part  of  that  time  had  been  spent  in  the  futile  effort  to 
establish  a  mission  at  Prome,  and  during  the  last  part  he 
had  labored  alone  with  native  converts  at  Rangoon,  dis- 
tributing tracts,  preaching  the  gospel,  and  translating  the 
Scriptures.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Wade  had  repaired  to  Ran- 
goon soon  after  his  return  from  Prome ;  but  Mrs.  Wade's 
health  had  so  completely  broken  that  it  was  thought  best 
for  her  and  her  husband  to  take  a  voyage  to  America. 
The  ship  in  which  the  Wades  sailed  was  driven  out  of  its 
course  by  violent  gales,  and  at  last  put  into  a  port  on  the 
coast  of  Arracan.  Here  Mrs.  Wade's  health  was  so  much 
improved  that  the  idea  of  going  to  America  was  given 
up,  and  they  returned  to  Moulmein  instead.  But,  in  the 
meantime,  Mr.  Judson's  presence  seemed  indispensable 
there.  A  new  party  of  missionaries  had  arrived  from 
America,  including  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Mason,  Mr-,  and  Mrs. 
Kincaid,  and  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Jones.  The  Masons  had 
gone  to  Tavoy,  Mr.  Jones  went  to  Rangoon  to  take  Mr. 
Judson's  place,  and  the  Kincaids  were  still  staying  at 
Moulmein. 

When  he  returned  to  Moulmein  he  saw  much  to  delight 
his  heart.    The  little  church  had  been  enlarged  by  the 
baptism  of  many  Burmese,  Karens,  and  Talings.  Two 
million  pages  of  tracts  and  translations  of  Scriptures  had 
130 


LIFE  IN  MOULMEIN 


131 


been  printed.  The  missionaries  had  also  made  repeated 
journeys  into  the  jungle,  where  a  church  of  fourteen 
members  had  been  organized  at  a  place  called  Wades- 
ville,  in  honor  of  the  missionary  who  had  first  preached 
the  gospel  there.  At  the  close  of  1831,  Mr.  Judson  re- 
ported, on  behalf  of  the  Burman  mission,  two  huudred 
and  seventeen  persons  as  baptized  during  the  year ;  one 
hundred  and  thirty-six  at  Moulmein,  seventy-six  at  Tavoy, 
and  five  at  Rangoon. 

Soon  after  returning  from  Rangoon  to  Moulmein  he 
entered  upon  a  new  field  of  operations.  "Whenever  his 
close  confinement  to  the  work  of  translation  necessitated 
a  change  of  air  and  scene,  it  was  his  custom  to  take  a 
tour  among  the  wild  Karen  tribes  occupying  the  jungle 
back  of  Moulmein.  His  restless  spirit  was  always  long- 
ing to  press  into  the  interior  of  the  country,  and  the  great 
Irawadi  valley  being  closed  to  him,  there  was  nothing 
left  but  to  penetrate  Burma  by  the  Salwen  and  its  tribu- 
taries, which  constitute  the  second  of  the  river  systems  by 
which  the  land  is  drained. 

The  Karens,  as  their  very  name  indicates,  were  wild 
men.  They  are  distributed  throughout  Burma,  Siam,  and 
parts  of  China,  and  number  from  two  hundred  to  four 
hundred  thousand.  They  are  perhaps  the  remnant  of  an 
aboriginal  and  subjugated  race,  and  are  looked  down  upon 
by  the  Burmese  as  inferiors.  They  speak  a  different  lan- 
guage, and  have  distinct  race  characteristics.  They  are 
peculiarly  accessible  to  the  Christian  religion,  being  de- 
void of  the  pride  and  dogmatism  which  cliaracterize  the 
Burmans.  Besides  they  had  a  hoary  tradition  that  white 
messengers  would  come  from  the  sea  to  teach  them. 

While  the  Burmans  lived  in  towns  and  cities,  the 
Karens,  like  our  Indians,  occupied  villages  far  back  in 


132 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


the  jungle,  by  the  side  of  mountain  streams.  Mr.  Jud- 
son's  attention  was  first  called  to  them  in  Rangoon. 
"  They  formed  small  parties  of  strange,  wild-looking 
men,  clad  in  unshapely  garments,  who  from  time  to  time 
straggled  past  his  residence."  He  was  told  that  they 
were  as  untamable  as  the  wild  cow  of  the  mountains ; 
that  they  seldom  entered  a  town  except  on  compulsion, 
and  were  nomadic  in  their  habits.  A  British  officer  gives 
a  singular  instance  of  their  wildness  : 

"  An  officer  was  lying  on  his  bed  in  a  little  room  inside 
the  stockaded  police  post,  which  had  a  narrow  gate  with 
an  armed  sentry  on  guard ;  the  hillman,  with  the  mini- 
mum of  clothing,  was  introduced  by  a  smart  sergeant, 
who  coaxed  him  to  approach.  He  cautiously  and  dis- 
trustfully, and  with  great  persuasion,  advanced  stooping 
to  the  bed  ;  when  close  to  it  he  gave  one  long,  steady  look 
at  the  white  man ;  suddenly,  with  a  yell,  threw  himself 
up  straight,  turned  round,  dashed  out  of  the  room,  through 
the  gate,  upsetting  the  armed  sentry,  rushed  across  a  little 
stream  at  the  bottom  of  the  stockade,  and,  clambering 
like  a  monkey  sheer  up  the  side  of  the  opposite  mountain, 
never  stopped  till  he  was  lost  to  sight  in  the  forest." 

In  order  to  secure  permanent  churches  among  the 
Karens,  the  first  step  of  the  missionaries  was  to  persuade 
them  to  settle  down  in  one  place  and  form  large  and  well- 
ordered  villages.  It  was  in  this  way  that  the  town  of 
Wadesville,  before  mentioned,  sprang  into  existence. 
Christianity  has  thus  proved  a  powerful  agent  in  civiliz- 
ing the  Karens,  and  a  Christian  village  is  easily  dis- 
tinguished from  a  heathen  one,  not  only  by  its  size,  but 
by  its  cleanly  and  regular  streets. 

Mr.  Judson's  tours  in  the  Karen  jungles  were  attended 
with  great  fatigue  and  danger.    He  was  always  accom- 


LIFE  IN  MOULMEIN 


133 


panied  by  a  band  of  associates.  He  would  take  with 
him  eight  or  ten  disciples,  and  dispatch  them  right  and 
left  up  the  tributaries  ot  tde  ttaiwen.  Two  by  two  they 
would  penetrate  the  wilderness,  and  meeting  their  teacher 
a  few  days  later,  would  report  to  him  the  results  of  their 
labor.  The  Oriental,  under  good  leadersliip,  makes  a 
faithful  and  intrepid  follower.  And  Mr.  Judson's  mag- 
netism of  character  held  his  assistants  to  him  with  hooks 
of  steel.  He  had  the  gift  of  getting  work,  and  their  best 
work,  out  of  the  converted  natives.  Promising  boys  and 
young  men  he  took  under  his  own  instruction,  and  quali- 
fied them  to  become  teachers  and  ministers. 

At  the  close  of  the  year  1832  Mr.  Judson  reported  one 
hundred  and  forty-three  baptisms;  three  at  IJangoon, 
seventy  at  Moulmein,  sixty-seven  at  Tavoy,  and  three  at 
Mergui.  This  made  five  hundred  and  sixteen  who  had 
been  baptized  since  his  arrival  in  Burma,  only  seventeen 
of  whom  had  been  finally  excluded. 

But  the  time  had  at  last  come  when  Mr.  Judson's  long 
domestic  solitude  was  to  end.  Under  date  of  April  10, 
1834,  we  find  in  his  journal  the  following  important 
entry : 

"  Was  married  to  Mrs.  Sarah  H.  Boardman,  who  was 
born  at  Alstead,  New  Hampshire,  November  4,  1803,  the 
eldest  daughter  of  Ralph  and  Abiah  0.  Hall — married 
to  George  D.  Boardman,  July  4,  1825 — left  a  widow 
February  11,  1831,  with  one  surviving  child,  George  D, 
Boardman,  born  August  18,  1828." 

Nearly  eight  years  of  loneliness  had  passed  since  he 
laid  his  beloved  Ann  beneath  the  hopia-tree.  He  had 
arrived  at  the  age  of  forty-six  when  he  married  Mrs. 
Boardman.  He  found  in  her  a  kindred  spirit.  She  had 
spent  the  three  years  of  widowhood  in  heroic  toil  among 


134 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


the  Karens  at  Tavoy,  and  had  turned  persistently  away 
from  the  urgent  appeals  of  her  friends  in  America  to 
return  home  for  her  own  sake  and  the  sake  of  her  little 
boy.  For  three  years  this  beautiful  and  intrepid  woman 
continued  her  husband's  work.  She  was  the  guiding 
cpirit  of  the  mission.  She  pointed  out  the  way  of  life  to 
the  Karen  inquirers  who  came  in  from  the  wilderness. 
She  conducted  her  schools  with  such  tact  and  ability  that 
when,  afterward,  an  appropriation  was  obtained  from  the 
English  Government  for  schools  throughout  the  provinces, 
it  was  expressly  stipulated  that  they  should  be  "  conducted 
on  the  plan  of  Mrs.  Boardman's  schools  at  Tavoy."  She 
even  made  long  missionary  tours  into  the  Karen  jungles. 
With  her  little  boy  carried  by  her  followers  at  her  side, 
she  climbed  the  mountains,  traversed  the  marshes,  forded 
the  streams,  and  threaded  the  forests.  On  one  of  these 
trips  she  sent  back  a  characteristic  message  to  Mrs.  Mason 
at  Tavoy :  "  Perhaps  you  had  better  send  the  chair,  as  it 
is  convenient  to  be  carried  over  the  streams  when  they 
are  deep.  You  will  laugh  when  I  tell  you  that  I  have 
forded  all  the  smaller  ones." 

Soon  after  their  marriage,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Judson  were 
compelled  to  part  with  little  George  Boardman.  He  was 
but  six  years  old,  and  yet  had  reached  an  age  when  a 
child  begins  to  be,  in  a  peculiar  sense,  the  companion  of 
parents.  But  the  children  of  Anglo-Saxon  residents  in 
the  East  have  to  be  sent  home  at  an  early  age,  otherwise 
they  are  in  danger  of  death  under  the  debilitating  influ- 
ence of  the  Oriental  climate ;  or  if  they  get  their  growth 
at  all,  are  liable  to  feebleness  of  mind  and  body.  Such  a 
separation  between  parent  and  child  cannot  but  be  pecu- 
liarly distressing  to  the  missionary.  He  devotes  himself 
for  life  and  expects  to  die  on  the  field,  and  thus  the  part- 


LIFE  IN  MOUL.MEIN 


135 


ing  bids  fair  to  be  final.  Other  Europeans  and  Ameri- 
cans are  merely  temporary  residents  in  the  East,  and 
though  also  compelled  to  send  their  children  home,  may 
reasonably  hope  to  meet  them  once  more  after  a  short 
separation.  The  missionary's  child,  on  the  other  hand, 
must  be  permanently  consigned  to  the  care  of  distant 
strangers.  This  is,  perhaps,  the  keenest  suffering  that 
falls  to  the  lot  of  a  missionary. 

It  was  a  heavy  day  for  Mrs.  Judson  when  her  husband 
carried  to  the  ship  "  Cashmere  "  the  child  *  who  had  been 
the  sharer  of  all  her  sufferings  and  griefs  at  Tavoy.  It 
was  well  for  her  that  a  veil  hid  from  her  eyes  the  imme- 
diate future,  else  she  might  have  seen  the  boy's  hair- 
breadth escape  from  pirates  and  the  tortures  of  mind  to 
which  the  shrinking  child  was  subjected  on  board  the 
ship  which  was  bearing  him  away  from  his  mother's 
side. 

While  in  Moulmein,  Mr.  Judson  completed  the  Bur- 
man  Bible.  It  was  about  the  time  of  his  marriage  to 
Mrs.  Boardman  that  he  finished  the  first  rough  draft. 
Seventeen  years  before  in  Rangoon,  all  he  had  to  oflTer  of 
the  precious  Scriptures  to  the  first  Burman  inquirer  was 
two  half-sheets  containing  the  first  five  chapters  of  Mat- 
thew. From  that  time  on,  beneath  all  his  toils  and 
sufferings  and  afliictions,  there  moved  the  steady  under- 
current of  this  great  purpose  and  labor  of  Bible  transla- 
tion. It  was  a  task  for  which  he  had  little  relish.  He 
much  preferred  dealing  with  the  Burmans  individually, 
and  persuading  them  one  by  one  of  the  truth  of  the 
gospel.  In  a  letter  which  states  his  purpose  of  relin- 
quishing for  many  months  the  pleasure  of  laboring  in  the 

1  George  Dana  Boardman,  d.  u.,  ll.  d.,  Pastor  Emeritus  of  the  First  Baptist 
Church,  Philadelphia. 


136 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


Karen  jungles  in  order  to  shut  himself  up  to  the  work  of 
translation,  he  says  :  "  The  tears  flow  as  I  write."  Allud- 
ing to  this  same  labor  of  translation,  he  writes  to  the 
corresponding  secretary :  "  And  so,  God  willing  and 
giving  us  life  and  strength,  we  hoj)e  to  go  on,  but  we 
hope  still  to  be  allowed  to  feel  that  our  great  work  is  to 
preach  the  gospel  viva  voce,  and  build  up  the  glorious 
kingdom  of  Christ  among  this  people." 

But  the  translation  of  the  Bible  was  essentially  neces- 
sary to  the  permanent  establishment  of  Christianity  in 
Burma,  and  no  other  living  man  was  qualified  for  the 
work.  And  so,  in  the  brief  intervals  of  preaching  and 
teaching  and  imprisonment  and  jungle  travel,  secluding 
himself  in  the  garret  at  Rangoon  and  afterward  in  the 
little  room  attached  to  the  mission-house  at  Moulmein, 
he  quietly  wrought  at  this  prodigious  task  until,  at  last, 
he  could  write  on  January  31,  1884,  at  the  age  of 
fifty-six : 

"  Thanks  be  to  God,  I  can  now  say  I  have  attained. 
I  have  knelt  down  before  him  with  the  last  leaf  in  my 
hand,  and  imploring  his  forgiveness  for  all  the  sins  which 
have  polluted  my  labors  in  this  department,  and  his  aid 
in  future  efforts  to  remove  the  errors  and  imperfections 
which  necessarily  cleave  to  the  work,  I  have  commended 
it  to  his  mercy  and  grace ;  I  have  dedicated  it  to  his 
glory.  May  he  make  his  own  inspired  word,  now  com- 
plete in  the  Barman  tongue,  the  grand  instrument  of 
filling  all  Burma  with  songs  of  praise  to  our  great  God 
and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ.  Amen." 

Great  as  was  the  task  of  thus  scrupulously  translating 
the  Bible,  the  revision  was  still  more  laborious.  Seven 
years  were  spent  in  revising  the  first  work.  It  was  a 
mental  peculiarity  of  Mr.  Judson  never  to  leave  a  thing 


LIFE  IN  MOULMEIN 


137 


alone  while  it  could  possibly  be  improved.  His  besetting 
sin  was,  in  bis  own  expressive  words  alluded  to  before,  a 
lust  for  finishing,  and  it  was  not  until  October,  1840,  that 
he  could  say : 

"  On  the  24th  of  October  last  I  enjoyed  the  great  happi- 
ness of  committing  to  the  press  the  last  sheet  of  the  new 
edition  of  the  Burmese  Bible." 

In  regard  to  its  merits  his  estimate  was  very  modest. 
He  says : 

"I  never  read  a  chapter  without  pencil  in  hand,  and 
Griesbach  and  Parkhurst  at  my  elbow ;  and  it  will  be  an 
object  to  me  through  life  to  bring  the  translation  to  such 
a  state  that  it  may  be  a  standard  work." 

How  far  his  own  humble  view  falls  short  of  doing  justice 
to  the  excellence  of  his  monumental  task,  may  be  gathered 
from  the  following  statement  by  President  Francis  Way- 
land  : 

"  Competent  judges  affirm  that  Dr.  Judscn's  translation 
of  the  Scriptures  is  the  most  perfect  work  of  the  kind  that 
has  yet  appeared  in  India.  On  this  subject  it  will  not  be 
inappropriate  to  introduce  a  few  sentences  from  the  pen 
of  a  gentleman  high  in  rank  in  India,  himself  a  distin- 
guished linguist  and  a  proficient  in  the  Burmese  lan- 
guage :  'The  best  judges  pronounce  it  to  be  all  that  he 
aimed  at  making  it ;  and  also,  what  with  him  never  was 
an  object,  an  imperishable  monument  of  the  man's 
genius.  We  may  venture  to  hazard  the  opinion  that  as 
Luther's  Bible  is  now  in  the  hands  of  Protestant  Ger- 
many, so  three  centuries  hence,  Judson's  Bible  will  be 
the  Bible  of  the  Christian  churches  of  Burma.'  " 

From  this  point  our  narrative  naturally  assumes  a 
more  domestic  character ;  and  we  are  permitted  to  see 


138 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


Mr.  Judsou's  deep  tenderness  as  a  husband  and  a  father. 
Some  of  the  greatest  objects  of  his  life  having  been 
achieved,  and  his  health  beginning  to  decline,  his  restless 
spirit  turned  instinctively  to  family  life  for  repose.  On 
October  31,  1835,  his  heart  was  cheered  by  the  birth  of  a 
daughter,  whose  name,  Abby  Ann,  associates  her  with 
his  only  sister,  from  whom  he  had  parted  so  many  years 
before,  and  also  with  her  whom  he  left  sleeping  beneath 
the  hopia-tree. 

A  son  was  born  April  7,  1837,  Adoniram  Brown 
Judson,  who  was  soon  followed  by  his  little  brother, 
Elnathan.  But  Mr.  Judson's  iron  purposes  were  not 
melted  in  the  ease  and  quiet  of  home  life.  He  did  not 
cease  his  efibrts  to  save  his  poor  Burmans.  A  few  weeks 
after  the  birth  of  his  son,  he  wrote : 

"  My  days  are  commonly  spent  in  the  following 
manner  :  the  morning  in  reading  Burman  ;  the  forenoon 
in  a  public  zayat  with  some  assistant,  preaching  to  those 
who  call ;  the  afternoon  in  preparing  or  revising  some- 
thing for  the  press,  correcting  proof-sheets,  etc. ;  the  even- 
ing in  conducting  worship  in  the  native  chapel,  and  con- 
versing with  the  assistants  or  other  native  Christians  or 
inquirers.' 

Upon  the  completion  of  the  fiftieth  year  of  his  life,  and  of 
his  twenty-fifth  year  in  Burma,  it  is  not  strange  that  even 
his  wiry  physique  should  have  begun  to  give  way  beneath 
the  strain.  Disease  fastened  first  upon  his  lungs,  entailing 
loss  of  voice  and  intense  pain.  It  was  thought  that  a 
short  voyage  to  Calcutta  would  restore  his  health.  He 
set  sail  on  February  19,  1839,  and  after  an  absence  of 
nearly  two  months,  during  which  he  had  a  delightful  visit 
Avith  the  English  Baptists  of  Calcutta  and  Serampore,  he 
returned  to  Moulmein,  his  health  somewhat  improved. 


LIFE  IN  MOULMEIN 


139 


The  sadness  of  this  separation  from  the  faithful  wife  and 
mother,  whom  he  left  behind  at  Moulmein,  was  intensified 
by  the  apprehension  that  he  might  die  on  the  voyage. 

The  native  Christians  at  Moulmein  were  glad  enough, 
after  an  interval  of  ten  months,  to  hear  again  the  voice 
of  their  beloved  teacher,  though  he  still  spoke  in  feeble 
accents,  and  was  far  from  convalescence.  In  a  letter  to 
a  fellow-missionary  he  refers  playfully  to  the  birth  of 
another  son  at  the  close  of  1839 :  "  Master  Henry  came 
into  notice  the  last  day  of  the  year ;  but  there  was  no 
earthquake  or  anything." 

Mrs.  Judson's  health  also  began  to  fail.  She  was  at- 
tacked by  the  disease  which  finally  terminated  her  life  at 
St.  Helena.  The  children  too  were  all  sick,  so  that  a 
sea  voyage  was  needed  for  the  very  preservation  of  the 
family.  Mr.  Judson  reluctantly  decided  to  embark  with 
his  wife  and  four  children  for  Calcutta. 

"  We  had  been  out  only  four  days,"  says  Mrs.  Judson, 
in  speaking  of  this  voyage,  "  when  we  struck  on  shoals, 
and  for  about  twenty  minutes  were  expecting  to  see  the 
large,  beautiful  vessel  a  wreck ;  and  then  all  on  board 
must  perish,  or  at  best  take  refuge  in  a  small  boat,  ex- 
posed to  the  dreary  tempest.  I  shall  never  forget  my 
feelings,  as  I  looked  over  the  side  of  the  vessel  tliat  niglit 
on  the  dark  ocean,  and  fancied  ourselves,  with  our  poor, 
sick,  and  almost  dying  children,  launched  on  its  stormy 
waves.  The  captain  tacked  as  soon  as  possible,  and  the 
tide  rising  at  the  time,  we  were  providentially  delivered 
from  our  extreme  peril." 

When  the  family  arrived  at  Serampore,  just  above 
Calcutta,  they  hired  "a  nice,  dry  house  on  the  very  bank 
of  the  river."  But,  though  the  sea  air  had  naturally  re- 
vived the  invalids,  as  soon  as  they  came  fairly  under  the 


140 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


hot  climate  of  Bengal  they  all  suffered  a  relapse.  What 
was  to  be  done  ?  They  met  at  Calcutta  a  pious  Scotch 
sea  captain,  whose  vessel  was  going  to  the  Isle  of  France, 
and  from  thence  to  Moulmein.  He  made  the  kind  pro- 
posal to  take  the  whole  family  on  such  terms  that  this 
circuitous  course  would  cost  them  no  more  than  to  go 
directly  to  Moulmein.  They  dreaded  the  voyage  in  the 
month  of  August,  which  is  a  very  dangerous  month  in 
the  bay  of  Bengal,  but  there  seemed  to  be  no  other 
alternative.  So  Mr.  Judson  accordingly  accepted  Cap- 
tain Hamlin's  offer,  and  decided  to  set  sail  for  that  island 
to  which  he  had  repaired  nearly  thirty  years  before,  when 
he  had  been  driven  from  Bengal  by  the  East  India  Com- 
pany. But  before  leaving  Serampore  the  fond  parents 
were  compelled  to  bury  their  little  Henry,  at  the  age  of 
one  year  and  seven  months. 

Bidding  farewell  to  his  newly  made  grave,  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Judson,  with  their  sick  children,  embarked  on  board 
the  "  Ramsay."  The  voyage  to  the  Isle  of  France  occupied 
about  six  weeks,  and  as  the  monsoon  was  drawing  to  a 
close,  the  storms  were  very  frequent,  sudden,  and  severe. 
Mrs.  Judson  thus  records  their  experience : 

"  Could  you  now  look  on  our  dismasted  vessel  you 
would  indeed  say,  she  is  a  '  ship  in  distress.'  For  the  last 
three  days  we  have  had  the  most  frightful  squalls  I  ever 
experienced ;  and  yesterday  two  topmasts,  a  top-gallant 
mast,  and  the  jib-boom,  with  all  their  sails,  were  torn 
away,  causing  a  tremendous  crash.  For  the  last  two 
nights  I  have  not  closed  my  eyes  to  sleep,  and  I  find  it 
quite  impossible  to  sleep  now.  I  have,  therefore,  taken 
my  pen,  though  the  vessel  rolls  so  that  I  fear  my  writing 
will  be  quite  illegible.  Do  not  infer  from  anything  1 
have  said  that  I  am  suffering  from  terror ;  my  wakeful- 


LIFE  IN  MOULMEIN 


141 


ness  has  been  occasioned  only  by  bodily  discomfort,  aris- 
ing from  the  violent  tossing  of  the  vessel.  I  thank  God 
that  I  feel  perfectly  calm  and  resigned  ;  and  I  can  leave 
myself  and  my  dear  family  in  his  hands,  with  a  feeling 
of  perfect  peace  and  composure." 

But  the  voyage,  severe  as  it  was,  proved  very  beneficial 
to  the  invalids,  and,  after  spending  a  month  in  Port  Louis, 
they  returned  to  Moulmein,  where  they  arrived  on  De- 
cember 10,  in  greatly  improved  health.  Captain  Hamlin 
declined  to  receive  any  compensation  for  the  passage  from 
Calcutta  to  Moulmein  via  the  Isle  of  France,  although  a 
fair  charge  for  the  double  voyage  would  have  been  two 
thousand  rupees,  or  about  one  thousand  dollars.  The 
money  which  Mr.  Judson  sent  him,  merely  as  an  expres- 
sion of  his  gratitude,  was  returned,  the  noble  sailor  saying 
that  he  considered  it  a  privilege  to  have  been  able  to  show 
some  kindness  to  the  servants  of  Christ.  Mr.  Judson 
wrote  at  once  to  the  Board,  suggesting  that  it  should  send 
to  the  captain  a  formal  letter  of  thanks,  together  with  a 
present,  "say  of  a  set  of  the  'Comprehensive  Commen- 
tary,' "  to  be  addressed  to  Captain  Thomas  Hamlin,  Jr., 
Greenock,  Scotland. 

Soon  after  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Judson  and  their  three  children 
returned  to  Moulmein,  another  son  was  given  them. 
He  was  named  Henry,  after  the  little  boy  whom  they  had 
left  in  his  lonely  grave  at  Serampore. 

About  this  time  Mr.  Judson  heard  of  the  death  of  hb 
venerable  mother,  who  departed  this  life  in  Plymouth, 
Mass.,  in  the  eighty-third  year  of  her  age.  His  father 
and  brother,  Elnathan,  had  died  before ;  and  his  sister, 
Abigail,  was  now  left  alone  at  Plymouth. 

At  this  time  also  there  was  pressed  upon  him  a  great 
task,  and  one  from  which  he  had  long  shnmk.  The 


142  ADONIRAM  JUDSON 

Board  at  home  urgently  desired  him  to  undertake  the 
compilation  of  a  Burman  dictionary.  His  heart  longed 
to  be  engaged  in  direct  individual  work,  winning  souls  to 
Christ.  He  had  no  relish  for  the  seclusion  which  the 
work  of  translation  required.  But  no  one  else  seemed 
qualified  for  this  task,  and  the  failure  of  his  voice  im- 
peratively forbade  his  preaching.  And  so,  with  the  ut- 
most reluctance,  he  turned  toward  a  work  which  was  to 
occupy  a  large  part  of  his  time  during  the  rest  of  his 
life. 


CHAPTER  XI 


VISIT  TO  AMERICA.     1845,  1846 

HILE  thus  plodding  on  in  bis  gigantic  task  of  corn- 


T  T  piling  a  Burman  dictionary,  Mr.  Judson  found  it 
necessary  to  embark  on  a  voyage  to  bis  native  land. 
Tbirty-tbree  years  bad  elapsed  since  tbe  memorable 
niueteentb  of  February,  1812,  wben  be  and  Mrs.  Judson 
bad  stood  on  tbe  deck  of  tbe  brig  "  Caravan,"  and  watcbed 
tbe  rocky  sbores  of  New  England  fade  out  of  tbeir  sigbt. 
How  swiftly  bad  tbese  years  taken  tbeir  fligbt, — tbe  one 
spent  in  tbe  voyage  to  Burma,  the  ten  of  foundation-lay- 
ing in  Rangoon,  tbe  two  of  suffering  in  Ava  and  Oung- 
pen-la,  tbe  two  of  transition  in  Amherst,  and  the  eighteen 
of  varied  plodding  toil  in  Moulmein.  And  now  the 
young  man  of  twenty-four  had  become  a  veteran  of  fifty- 
seven.  Again  and  again  he  had  been  invited  by  the 
Board  to  revisit  his  beloved  native  land  and  recruit  bis 
wasting  forces,  but  he  bad  steadily  declined.  More  than 
five  years  before  he  had  received  from  tbe  corresponding 
secretary  an  urgent  invitation  to  return.  Nevertheless 
the  faithful  missionary  bad  worked  patiently  ou,  refusing 
to  leave  bis  field.  At  last,  however,  a  return  to  America 
became  imperative  in  order  to  preserve  Mrs.  Judson's 
life.  After  the  birth  of  two  children,  Charles,'  born  De- 
cember 18,  1843,  and  Edward,  born  December  27,  1844, 
her  health  rapidly  declined.  She  bad  taken  several  short 
journeys  along  the  coast  without  receiving  any  perma- 


1  Died  in  infancy. 


143 


144 


ADONIEAM  JUDSON 


nent  benefit.  On  one  of  these  trips  she  was  accompanied 
by  her  eldest  child,  Abby,  who  was  about  ten  years  old, 
and  also  by  the  little  invalid  Charlie ;  Mr.  J udson  with 
his  four  boys,  Adoniram,  Elnathan,  Henry,  and  the  infant 
Edward,  remaining  behind  at  Moiilmein.  But  as  has 
already  been  stated,  these  short  trips  along  the  Tenasse- 
rim  coast  proved  quite  unavailing,  Mrs.  Judson's  con- 
dition was  almost  desperate,  and  the  only  hope  of  saving 
this  precious  life  lay  in  a  voyage  to  America. 

On  April  26,  1845,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Judson,  with  the 
three  elder  children,  Abby,  Adoniram,  and  Elnathan, 
embarked  on  the  ship  "  Paragon  "  bound  for  London. 
They  were  accompanied  by  two  Bur  man  assistants, 
as  it  was  Mr.  Judson's  purpose  to  spend  a  portion  of 
each  day  upon  the  Burman  dictionary.  The  three 
younger  children,  Henry,  Charles,  and  Edward  were 
left  behind  in  the  tender  care  of  the  missionaries  at  Moul- 
mein.  The  first  part  of  the  voyage  was  so  rough  that  the 
vessel  sprang  a  leak,  and  the  captain  determined  to  put 
in  at  the  Isle  of  France ;  and  on  July  5  the  ship,  with 
its  precious  freight,  arrived  at  Port  Louis.  Mrs.  Judson 
had  so  far  improved  in  health  that  the  two  missionaries 
formed  the  purpose  of  separating,  as  it  was  thought  that 
Mrs.  Judson  would  now  be  able  to  continue  the  voyage 
to  America  alone,  while  Mr.  Judson  should  return  to  his 
work  in  Moulmein.  It  would  be  hard  to  find  a  parallel 
for  this  instance  of  heroic  self-sacrifice.  Of  these  two 
returning  missionaries,  one  was  a  poor,  shattered  invalid, 
consenting  to  forego  her  beloved  husband's  society  and  to 
take  the  long  westward  journey  in  solitude ;  the  other 
relinquishing  the  prospect  of  again  seeing  his  native  land 
after  an  absence  of  thirty-three  years,  and  leaving  the 
gide  of  bis  sick  wife  the  moment  his  presence  seemed  no 


VISIT  TO  AMERICA 


145 


longer  indispensable,  that  lie  might  resume  his  labors 
among  the  perishing  Burmaus.  It  was  uuder  tiiese  circum- 
stances that  Mrs.  Judson  wrote  the  pathetic  lines  which 
shall  be  recited  for  a  memorial  of  her  wheresoever  the 
gospel  shall  be  preached  in  the  whole  world : 
We  part  ou  this  green  islet,  love, — 

Thou  for  the  eastern  main, 
I  for  the  setting  sun,  love, 
O,  when  to  meet  again  1 

My  heart  is  sad  for  thee,  love, 

For  lone  thy  way  will  be; 
And  oft  thy  tears  will  fall,  love. 

For  thy  children  and  for  me. 

The  music  of  thy  daughter's  voice 

Thou' It  miss  for  many  a  year; 
And  the  merry  shout  of  thine  elder  boys 

Thou' It  list  in  vain  to  hear. 

When  we  knelt  to  see  our  Henry  die, 

And  heard  his  last,  faint  moan. 
Each  wiped  the  tear  from  th'  other's  eye; 

Now  each  must  weep  alone. 

My  tears  fall  fast  for  thee,  love ; 

How  can  I  say  Farewell ! 
But  go ;  thy  God  be  with  thee,  love, 

Thy  heart's  deep  grief  to  quell. 

Yet  my  spirit  clings  to  thine,  love ; 

Thy  soul  remains  with  me. 
And  oft  we'll  hold  communion  sweet 

O'er  the  dark  and  distant  sea. 

And  who  can  paint  our  mutual  joy, 

When,  all  our  wanderings  o'er, 
We  both  shall  clasp  our  infants  three 

At  home,  on  Burma's  shore  I 

But  higher  shall  our  raptures  glow, 

On  yon  celestial  plain, 
When  the  loved  and  parted  here  below 

Meet  ne'er  to  part  iigain. 

J 


146 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


Then  gird  thine  armor  on,  love, 

Nor  faint  thou  by  the  way, 
Till  Buddh  shall  fall,  and  Burma's  sons 

Shall  own  Messiah's  sway. 

The  two  native  assistants  were  therefore  sent  back  to 
Moulmein,  and  Mr.  Judson  expected  to  follow  them  as 
soon  as  he  had  seen  Mrs.  Judson  fairly  on  board  ship  for 
America.  But  she  experienced  a  severe  relapse  which 
reduced  her  strength  lower  than  ever  before;  and  Mr. 
Judson  was  soon  convinced  that  it  would  be  impossible 
for  him  to  leave  her,  and  although  he  bitterly  regretted 
the  loss  of  his  assistants,  he  felt  obliged,  after  spending 
three  weeks  in  the  Isle  of  France,  to  re-embark  with  Mrs. 
Judson.  They  took  passage  with  Captain  Codman,  of 
the  ship  "  Sophia  Walker,"  which  was  bound  directly  for 
the  United  States.  On  the  25th  of  July  they  sailed  from 
Port  Louis,  and  after  a  time  Mrs.  Judson  appeared  to  be 
recovering.  But  the  appearance  proved  deceptive.  There 
came  another  relapse  which  soon  terminated  in  death. 

In  the  cold  weather  off  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope  she 
seemed  better,  but  she  never  really  recovered  from  her 
last  relapse,  and  though  sometimes  better,  continued  on 
the  whole  to  decline  until  they  neared  St.  Helena,  when 
all  hope  of  her  recovery  was  given  up.  She  lingered 
until  August  1,  when,  at  three  o'clock  in  the  morning,  she 
obtained  her  release  from  further  suffering,  and  entered 
into  the  joy  of  her  Lord.  She  was  buried  in  the  after- 
noon of  the  same  day ;  and  in  the  evening  her  husband 
and  children  were  again  at  sea. 

She  sleeps  sweetly  here,  on  this  rock  of  the  ocean, 
•    Away  from  the  home  of  her  youth, 
And  far  from  the  land  were,  with  heartfelt  devotion. 
She  scattered  the  bright  beams  of  truth. 


VISIT  TO  AMERICA 


147 


The  "  Sophia  Walker,"  with  Mr.  Judson  and  his  three 
children  on  board,  arrived  at  Boston,  October  15,  1845. 
The  missionary  who  had  been  so  long  absent  from  his 
native  land  felt  considerable  anxiety  before  going  on 
shore  as  to  where  he  should  secure  suitable  lodgings  in 
the  city.  He  little  dreamed  that  every  home  would  be 
thrown  open  to  him,  and  that  soon  his  progress  from  city 
to  city  would  almost  assume  the  proportions  of  a  triumphal 
march.  He  was  ill  prepared  for  such  an  enthusiastic 
greeting.  He  naturally  shrank  from  observation.  He 
was  in  exceedingly  delicate  health.  His  pulmonary 
difficulty  prevented  his  speaking  much  above  a  husky 
whisper.  He  had  so  long  used  a  foreign  tongue  that  it 
was  hard  work  for  him  to  form  sentences  in  English.  Pie 
could  address  an  audience  only  at  second-hand,  whisper- 
ing his  words  to  a  speaker  at  his  side,  who  would  convey 
them  to  the  ears  of  the  hearers.  Naturally  humble  and 
shy,  he  found  it  exceedingly  distasteful  to  be  publicly 
harangued  and  eulogized.  On  one  occasion,  an  eye-wit- 
ness relates  that  while  the  returned  missionary  was  listen- 
ing to  words  of  eloquent  praise  addressed  to  him  in  the 
presence  of  a  great  concourse  of  people,  "  his  head  sank 
lower  and  lower  until  the  chin  seemed  to  touch  his  breast." 
He  wrote  to  the  corresponding  secretary :  "  My  chief 
object  in  writing  is  to  beg  that  I  may  be  excused  from 
attending  any  more  such  meetings  until  I  get  a  little 
better.  I  expect  to  be  in  Boston  to-morrow,  and  shall 
want  two  or  three  days  for  some  necessary  business,  and 
propose  to  go  to  Worcester  on  Friday  or  Saturday ;  and 
if  I  could  spend  next  Sabbath  alone  in  some  chamber,  I 
should  feel  it  a  great  privilege,  both  as  a  refreshment  to 
the  soul  and  a  relief  to  the  body." 

He  had  come  home  to  find  that  his  native  country  was 


148 


ADONIRAM  JUDSOX 


almost  a  strange  land.  The  railroad  system  had  sprung 
into  existence  during  his  absence.  He  entered  the  cars 
at  Worcester  one  day,  and  had  just  taken  his  seat,  when 
a  boy  came  along  with  the  daily  newspapers.  He  said 
to  Mr.  Judson,  "  Do  you  want  a  paper,  sir  ? "  "  Yes, 
thank  you,"  the  missionary  replied,  and  taking  the  paper 
began  to  read.  The  newsboy  stood  waiting  for  his  pay 
until  a  lady  passenger,  occupying  the  same  seat  with  Mr. 
Judson,  said  to  him,  "  The  boy  expects  to  be  paid  for  his 
paper."  "  Why,"  replied  the  missionary,  with  the  utmost 
surprise,  "  I  have  been  distributing  papers  gratuitously  in 
Burma  so  long  that  I  had  no  idea  the  boy  was  expecting 
any  pay." 

He  often  disappointed  public  assemblies  by  declining 
to  relate  his  own  adventures,  telling  instead  the  old  story 
of  the  cross. 

His  movements  in  this  country  were  chronicled  alike 
by  the  secular  and  religious  newspapers.  His  toils  and 
sufferings  had  made  his  name  a  household  word  among 
all  Christians,  and  wherever  he  went  the  churches  were 
crowded  with  people  who  desired  to  see  and  to  hear  Amer- 
ica's pioneer  missionary.  On  the  evening  of  the  second  day 
after  his  arrival  a  meeting  was  held  in  the  Bowdoin  Square 
Church,  Boston.  The  following  were  the  closing  words 
of  welcome  spoken  by  Dr.  Sharp : 

"  We  welcome  you  to  your  native  land ;  we  welcome 
you  to  the  scenes  of  your  early  and  manly  youth ;  we 
welcome  you  to  our  worshiping  assemblies ;  we  welcome 
you  to  our  hearts.  As  the  representative  of  the  ministers 
and  private  Christians  present,  I  give  to  you  this  hand  of 
cordial  welcome,  of  sympathy,  of  approbation,  and  of 
love.  And  I  believe,  could  all  our  denomination  be 
collected  in  one  vast  assembly,  they  would  request  and 


VISIT  TO  AMERICA 


149 


empower  some  one  to  perform  this  service  for  them  ;  or, 
rather,  each  one  would  prefer  to  give  this  significant 
token  of  love,  and  respect,  and  good  wishes,  for  himself. 
Were  it  possible,  and  could  your  strength  hold  out,  and 
your  hand  bear  the  grasp  and  the  cordial  shake  of  so 
many,  I  could  wish  that  every  one  who  loves  the  Bible 
and  missions  might  be  his  own  representative,  and  give 
to  you,  as  I  do,  the  hand  of  an  honest,  unchanging,  and 
cordial  good-will." 

And  at  the  close  Mr.  Judson  rose  to  reply.  Dr.  Hague 
standing  at  his  side  and  interpreting  to  the  multitude 
these  whispered  utterances : 

"  Through  the  mercy  of  God  I  am  permitted  to  stand 
before  you  here  this  evening,  a  pensioner  of  your  bounty. 
I  desire  to  thank  you  for  all  your  sympathy  and  aid,  and 
I  pray  God's  blessing  to  rest  upon  you.  .  .  All  that  has 
been  done  in  Burma  has  been  done  by  the  churches, 
through  the  feeble  and  unworthy  instrumentality  of  my- 
self and  my  brethren.  .  .  It  is  one  of  the  severest 
trials  of  my  life  not  to  be  able  to  lift  up  my  voice,  and 
give  free  utterance  to  my  feelings  before  this  congrega- 
tion ;  but  repeated  trials  have  assured  me  that  I  cannot 
safely  attempt  it.  And  I  am  much  influenced  by  the 
circumstance  that  it  was  a  request  of  my  wife,  in  her 
dying  hour,  that  I  would  not  address  public  meetings  on 
my  arrival.  .  .  I  will  only  add,  that  I  beg  your  pray- 
ers for  the  brethren  I  have  left  iu  Burma ;  for  the  feeble 
churches  we  have  planted  there ;  and  that  the  good  work 
ot  God's  grace  may  go  on  until  the  world  shall  be  filled 
with  his  glory." 

When  he  had  finished,  Dr.  Hague  continued  to  address 
the  audience  in  an  eloquent  strain  until  the  thread  of  his 
address  was  strangely  interrupted.    A  man  had  pressed 


150 


ADONIEAM  JUDSON 


his  way  through  the  crowded  aisles  and  had  ascended  the 
pulpit.  He  and  Mr.  Judson  embraced  each  other  with 
tears  of  joy  and  affection.  It  was  Samuel  Nott,  Jr.,  the 
only  survivor,  except  Mr.  Judson,  of  that  group  of 
seminary  students  who  had  conceived  the  stupendous 
idea  of  American  foreign  missions.  He  was  one  of  the 
five  who  had  first  gone  to  India,  but  had  been  compelled 
to  return  to  America  on  account  of  ill  health,  and  now, 
after  a  separation  of  thirty-three  years,  wais  permitted  to 
meet  his  former  fellow-student  under  these  circumstances 
of  thrilling  interest. 

In  November,  Mr.  Judson  visited  Providence,  the  seat 
of  Brown  University,  where  he  had  been  graduated  about 
forty  years  before  with  the  highest  honors.  A  public 
meeting  was  held  in  the  old  First  Baptist  Church,  which 
was  filled  to  overflowing.  Prayer  was  offered  by  Dr. 
Granger,  the  pastor  of  the  church,  and  Dr.  Way- 
land  made  an  address.  Mr.  Judson  then  said  a  few 
words,  which  were  repeated  unto  the  audience  by  Dr. 
Caswell. 

The  missionary  organization  which  had  sustained  Mr. 
Judson  in  Burma  for  so  many  years,  opened  its  triennial 
convention  in  New  York  City,  on  the  19th  of  November, 
1845.  The  occasion  was  one  never  to  be  forgotten. 
Services  were  held  in  the  Baptist  Tabernacle,  and  Mr. 
Judson  was  present.  Dr.  Cone  oflTered  some  appropriate 
resolutions  of  sympathy  and  welcome,  and  then,  taking 
Mr.  Judson  by  the  hand,  he  introduced  him  to  Dr.  Way- 
land,  the  president  of  the  convention,  as  Jesus  Christ's 
man. 

Mr.  Judson,  who  had  been  warned  by  his  physicians 
against  speaking  in  public,  could  only  express  his  thank- 
fulness in  a  few  simple  and  touching  words.  Subse- 


VISIT  TO  AMERICA 


151 


quently,  in  the  course  of  the  convention,  the  proposition 
was  made  to  abandon  the  mission  in  Arracan.  This 
brought  him  to  his  feet.  "  Though  forbidden  to  speak 
by  my  medical  adviser,  I  must  say  a  few  words.  I  must 
protest  against  the  abandonment  of  the  Arracan  mission." 
These  opening  words  were  audible  to  all  present.  Then 
his  voice  sank  into  a  whisper  as  he  stated  the  reasons  why 
the  mission  should  not  be  given  up.  His  closing  words 
were :  "  If  the  convention  thinks  my  services  can  be  dis- 
pensed with  in  finishing  my  dictionary,  I  will  go  imme- 
diately to  Arracan ;  or,  if  God  should  spare  my  life  to 
finish  my  dictionary,  I  will  go  there  afterward  and  labor 
there  and  die  and  be  buried  there."  It  would  be  im- 
possible to  describe  the  thrilling  efiect  upon  the  audi- 
ence of  these  broken  words,  uttered  in  a  low  whisper, 
and  reproduced  by  Dr.  Cone.  The  Arracan  mission  was 
saved. 

While  Mr.  Judson  was  visiting  Bradford,  the  native 
town  of  his  beloved  Ann,  he  learned  of  the  death  of 
Charlie,  one  of  the  little  ones  whom  he  had  left  behind 
in  Burma. 

While  on  this  tour  through  the  country,  everyw'c.ere 
kindling  missionary  enthusiasm,  he  met,  during  a  visit  in 
Philadelphia,  Miss  Emily  Chubbuck,  who,  under  the 
nora  deplume  of  Fanny  Forester,  had  achieved  a  wide 
literary  reputation,  with  stiU  wider  fame  apparently 
awaiting  her.  This  lady,  who  was  to  t'dke  the  place  at  his 
side,  left  successively  vacant  by  Ann  Hasseltine  and  Sarah 
Boardman,  had  been  disciplined  in  the  hard  school  of 
poverty.  She  was  born  August  22,  1817,  at  Eaton,  a 
little  town  in  Central  New  York,  and  near  a  stream 
which,  with  its  fringe  of  alders,  murmurs  here  and  there 
in  her  prose  and  poetry  under  the  name  of  Alderbrook. 


152 


ADONIKAM  JUDSON 


Her  parents,  Charles  Chubbuck  and  Lavinia  Richards, 
had  moved  to  Eaton  from  New  Hampshire.  Her  child- 
hood days  were  spent  in  a  little  house  on  the  road  from 
Eaton  to  West  Eaton,  perched  against  a  hill  so  close 
beneath  the  road  that,  as  she  says,  one  would  feel  half 
disposed  "  to  step  from  the  road  where  you  stood  to  the 
top  of  the  chimney."  Her  parents  were  very  poor,  and 
she  thus  describes  a  winter  she  passed  when  she  was  about 
thirteen  years  old : 

"Father  was  absent  nearly  all  the  time,  distributing 
newspapers ;  and  the  severity  of  the  winter  so  affected  his 
health  that  he  could  do  but  little  when  he  was  at  home. 
Mother,  Harriet,  and  I  were  frequently  compelled  to  go 
out  into  the  fields,  and  dig  broken  wood  out  of  the  snow 
to  keep  ourselves  from  fz*eezing.  Catherine  and  I  went 
to  the  district  school  as  much  as  we  could." 

Again  she  wrote : 

"November,  1830.  Father's  attempt  at  farming 
proved,  as  might  have  been  expected,  an  entire  failure, 
and  for  want  of  a  better  place  he  determined  to  remove 
to  the  village.  He  took  a  little  old  house  on  the  out- 
skirts, the  poorest  shelter  we  ever  had,  with  only  two 
rooms  on  the  floor  and  a  loft,  to  which  we  ascended  by 
means  of  a  ladder.  We  were  not  discouraged,  however, 
but  managed  to  make  the  house  a  little  genteel  as  well  as 
tidy.  Harriet  and  I  used  a  turn-up  bedstead,  surrounded 
by  pretty  chintz  curtains,  and  we  made  a  parlor  and  din- 
ing room  of  the  room  by  day.  Harriet  had  a  knack  at 
twisting  ribbons  and  fitting  dresses,  and  she  took  in  sew- 
ing ;  Catherine  and  Wallace  went  to  school ;  and  I  got 
constant  employment  of  a  little  Scotch  weaver  and  thread- 
maker  at  twisting  thread.  Benjamin  returned  to  his  old 
place  and  Walker  was  still  in  the  printing  ofiice." 


VISIT  TO  AMEEICA 


153 


Her  little  hands  very  early  learned  to  contribute  tc  the 
"  8up])ort  of  the  family.  When  eleven  years  old  she  earned 
a  dollar  and  twenty-five  cents  a  week  splicing  rolls  in  a 
woolen  factory.  She  says  of  this  period :  "  My  prin- 
cipal recollections  are  of  noise  and  filth,  bleeding  hanJo 
and  aching  feet,  and  a  very  sad  heart."  Little  did  the 
residents  of  Eaton  then  dream  that  this  little  factory  girl 
was  afterward  to  become  such  an  honor  to  their  humble 
village.  Subsequently,  when  she  first  applied  for  the 
position  of  teacher  in  the  district  school,  a  young  farmer 
who  was  acting  trustee,  replied  :  "  Why,  the  scholars  will 
be  bigger  than  their  teacher !  "  But  the  little  schoolmis- 
tress made  her  teaching  a  success,  and  before  she  was 
twenty  years  of  age  had  contributed  to  the  village  news- 
paper poems  of  great  literary  merit.  About  this  time  she 
attracted  the  attention  of  the  Misses  Sheldon,  who  were  con- 
ducting a  well-known  school  at  Utica.  They  offered 
her  gratuitous  instruction  for  a  single  term,  and  subse- 
quently proposed  to  complete  her  education  without  present 
charge.  This  afforded  her  an  excellent  opportunity  for 
self-improvement.  Her  health,  however,  had  been  shat- 
tered by  the  hardships  and  labors  of  her  earlier  years, 
and  it  was  through  great  weakness  and  sufiering  that  she 
pressed  toward  higher  literary  excellence.  She  was  con- 
tinually spurred  on  by  her  desire  to  secure  a  home  for 
her  aged  parents.  It  was  for  this  purpose  that  she  wrote 
those  charming  stories,  in  which  grace  and  strength  of 
style  are  combined  with  the  purest  moral  tone.  It  was 
under  such  circumstances  as  these  that  she  sent  to  the 
press  the  stories  for  children,  entitled  "  The  Great  Secret," 
"Effie  Maurice,"  "Charles  Linn,"  "Allen  Lucas," 
"  John  Frink,"  and  also  the  fascinating  tales  for  older 
readers,  which  were  afterward  gathered  together  under 


154 


ADONIEAM  JUDSON 


the  name  of  "  Alderbrook."  Her  biographer  relates  the 
following  incident : 

"As  Miss  Sheldon  was  at  one  time  passing  near  mid- 
night through  the  halls,  a  light  streaming  from  Emily's 
apartment  attracted  her  attention,  and  softly  opening 
the  door,  she  stole  in  upon  her  vigils.  Emily  sat  in  her 
night-dress,  her  papers  lying  outspread  before  her,  grasp- 
ing with  both  hands  her  throbbing  temples,  and  pale  as  a 
marble  statue.  Miss  S.  went  to  her,  whispered  words  of 
sympathy,  and  gently  chided  her  for  robbing  her  system 
of  its  needed  repose.  Emily's  heart  was  already  full,  and 
now  the  fountain  of  feeling  overflowed  iu  uncontrollable 
weeping.  '  Oh,  Miss  Sheldon,'  she  exclaimed,  '  I  must 
write !  1 7nust  write !  I  must  do  what  I  can  to  aid  my 
poor  parents.'  " 

While  making  a  visit  in  New  York  during  the  month 
of  June,  1847,  Miss  Chubbuck  wrote  a  letter  to  the 
"  Evening  Mirror,"  which  at  that  time  was  an  exceed- 
ingly popular  magazine,  edited  by  George  P.  Morris  and 
N.  P.  Willis.  In  a  graceful  and  sportive  vein  she  offered 
her  literary  services  to  this  periodical.  This  letter  at- 
tracted the  attention  of  Mr.  Willis,  and  drcAv  from  him  a 
characteristic  reply.  Mr.  Willis  at  once  introduced  her 
through  his  columns  to  the  American  public,  and  though 
they  saw  each  other  but  once,  he  became  from  this 
time  on  her  life-long  literary  adviser  and  friend.  And 
so,  after  the  long  struggle  with  poverty  and  ill  health, 
this  woman,  by  dint  of  an  imperious  will  and  an  unmistak- 
able genius,  began  to  take  her  place  among  the  foremost 
literary  characters  of  America. 

But  besides  her  intellectual  gifts,  Miss  Chubbuck  had 
an  intensely  religious  nature.  She  was  the  child  of  pious 
parents  and  was  subject  to  very  early  religious  impres- 


VISIT  TO  AMERICA 


155 


sions.  In  subsequent  life  she  dated  her  conversion  as 
occurring  when  she  was  eight  years  old.  She  used  to 
attend  all  the  religious  services  in  the  neighborhood. 
She  writes : 

"Indeed,  I  believe  my  solemn  little  face  was  almost 
ludicrously  familiar  to  worshipers  of  every  denomina- 
tion, for  I  remember  a  Presbyterian  once  sapug  to  nie, 
as  I  Avas  leaving  the  chapel,  after  having  as  usual  asked 
prayers :  '  What !  this  little  girl  not  converted  yet  ? 
How  do  you  suppose  we  can  waste  any  more  time  iu 
praying  for  you '? '  "  Indeed,  she  seems  from  her  earliest 
years  to  have  been  haunted  by  the  conviction  that  she 
was,  some  time  or  other,  to  be  a  missionary  to  the  heathen  ; 
but  she  was  always  striving  to  rid  herself  of  this  irksome 
thought. 

It  was  by  a  strange  coincidence  that  this  gifted  woman, 
who  had  been  from  childhood  deeply  impressed  by  the 
story  of  Ann  Hasseltine,  should  meet  Mr.  Judson,  i-i 
January,  1846.  It  was  at  the  house  of  Dr.  Gillette  in 
Philadelphia;  Mr.  Judson  had  been  invited  to  come 
from  Boston,  and  Dr.  Gillette  had  gone  there  to  bring 
him  on.  The  journey  was  long  and  cold,  and  an  accident 
caused  a  delay  of  three  or  four  hours.  Dr.  Gillette  saw 
in  the  hands  of  a  friend  a  collection  of  light  sketches 
called  "Trippings,"  by  Fanny  Forester.  He  borrowed 
it  and  handed  it  to  Mr.  Judson  that  he  might  re&a  it 
and  so  while  away  the  tedious  and  uncomfortable  hours 
of  delay.  Mr.  Judson  read  portions  of  the  book,  and 
recognizing  the  power  with  which  it  was  written,  ex- 
pressed a  regret  that  a  person  of  such  intellectual  gifts 
should  devote  them  to  the  writing  of  light  literature. 
"I  should  be  glad  to  know  her,"  he  remarked.  "The 
lady  who  writes  so  well  ought  to  write  better.    It  is  a 


156 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


pity  that  such  fine  talents  should  be  employed  on  such 
subjects." 

Dr.  Gillette  answered  that  he  would  soon  have  the 
pleasure  of  meeting  her,  because  she  was  at  that  time  a 
guest  in  his  own  house.  Upon  their  arrival,  Mr.  Judson  was 
entertained  at  the  residence  of  Mr.  Robarts,  and  the  nexi 
morning  called  at  Dr.  Gillette's,  where  he  met  Miss 
Chubbuck. 

This  meeting  began  an  acquaintance  which  ripened 
into  an  engagement,  and  Mr.  Judson  and  Emily 
Chubbuck  were  married  in  Hamilton,  N.  Y.,  on  the 
second  of  the  following  June.  The  marriage  was 
pleasing  neither  to  the  literary  nor  to  the  religious 
world.  The  one  thought  that  the  brilliant  Fanny 
Forester  was  throwing  herself  away  in  marrying  "an 
old  missionary " ;  the  other  feared  that  the  moral 
grandeur  of  the  missionary  cause  was  compromised  by  an 
alliance  between  its  venerable  founder  and  a  writer  of 
fiction.  These  conflicting  opinions  made  however  but  a 
slight  impression  upon  Mr.  Judson's  mind.  He  was  not 
dependent  for  his  happiness  and  well-being  upon  the 
opinions  of  others.  He  had  long  before  learned  to  think 
and  to  act  independently,  otherwise  he  would  never  hav(: 
become  a  missionary,  least  of  all  a  Baptist. 

licss  than  six  weeks  intervened  between  his  marriage 
to  Miss  Chubbuck  and  their  embarkation  for  Burma. 
Many  tender  farewells  had  to  be  spoken.  He  well  knew 
that  the  dear  ones  from  whom  he  was  parting  would 
probably  never  be  seen  again  on  earth.  Adoniram  and 
Elnathan  he  left  with  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Newton  at  Wor- 
cester, and  his  daughter  Abby  he  committed  to  the  care 
of  his  only  sister  at  Plymouth. 

At  Boston,  July  11,  1846,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Judson,  in 


VISIT  TO  AMEEICA 


157 


company  with  the  newly  appointed  missionaries,  Miss 
Lillybridge,  the  Beechers,  and  the  Harrises,  embarked 
on  the  "  Faueuil  Hall,"  Captain  Hallett,  bound  for  Moiil- 
mein.  Many  friends  mingled  in  that  farewell  scene. 
He  was  leaving  behind  him  fragrant  memories.  In 
many  a  household  his  prayers  are  cherished  as  a  "  precious 
benediction."  He  had  been  entertained  in  the  house  of 
his  friend,  Gardner  Colby,  of  Boston,  and  at  the  family 
altar  he  thus  prayed  for  the  family  of  his  host :  "  May 
they,  and  their  children,  and  their  children's  children  in 
every  generation  to  the  end  of  time,  follow  each  other  in 
uninterrupted  succession  through  the  gates  of  glory ! '"  a 
prayer  that  has  borne  fruitage  from  that  time  until  now. 
The  Colbys  came  to  the  ship  to  bid  him  good-bye,  and  the 
Lincolns,  and  the  Gillettes,  and  Mrs.  Judson's  bosom 
friend,  Miss  Anna  Maria  Anable;  and  among  others, 
but  dearer  thau  all  the  rest,  a  slender  youth  of  eighteen, 
the  child  of  her  who  had  been  laid  to  rest  at  St.  Helena, 
George  Dana  Boardman. 


CHAPTER  XII 


LAST  YEARS.  1846-1850 


lii /r  ORE  than  four  months  elapsed  after  Mr.  and  Mrs 


J-liL  Judson  parted  from  their  friends  in  Boston  before 
they  arrived  at  Moulmein.  The  passage,  though  long, 
was  pleasant.  In  passing  the  Island  of  St.  Helena  his 
thoughts  dwelt  tenderly  upon  her  who,  like  Rachel  of 
old,  had  died  "  on  the  way,  when  it  was  but  a  little  way 
to  go  unto  Ephrath." 

On  the  30th  of  November  he  arrived  at  Moulmein,  and 
clasped  once  more  in  his  arms  his  little  children,  Henry 
and  Edward,  from  whom  he  had  parted  more  than 
eighteen  mouths  before.  But,  alas,  one  little  wan  face 
was  missing  !  Upon  his  return  he  found  that  the  mission 
at  Moulmein  had  flourished  during  his  absence,  and  was 
able  to  send  an  encouraging  report  to  the  corresponding 
secretary.  But  for  himself  he  still  ardently  cherished 
the  purpose  to  enter  Burma  proper.  His  eye  was  upon 
his  old  field,  Rangoon.  To  be  sure,  the  new  Burman 
king  was  a  bigoted  Buddhist,  and  therefore  bitterly  op- 
posed to  the  propagation  of  the  Christian  religion.  But 
in  Moulmein  there  were  laborers  enough  ;  while  in  Ran- 
goon he  would  be  favorably  situated  for  completing  the 
dictionary,  as  he  would  there  have  access  to  learned  men, 
and  also  to  books  not  to  be  found  in  Moulmein.  More- 
over, he  hoped  that  Burman  intolerance  miglit  at  last  yield, 
and  he  was  eager  to  press  into  the  interior  of  the  empire 
and  establish  a  mission  in  Ava,  the  scene  of  his  sufferings. 


158 


LAST  YEARS 


159 


Impelled  by  these  motives,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Judson,  tak- 
ing with  them  their  two  little  boys,  embarked  at  Moulmeiu 
for  Rangoon,  on  February  15,  1847.  Only  two  months 
and  a  half  had  passed  since  their  return  from  America. 
They  might  have  been  pardoned  had  they  remained  longer 
in  the  society  of  their  missionary  associates  in  Moulmein. 
But  it  was  not  their  purpose  to  seek  their  own  pleasure. 
They  willingly  left  the  twilight  of  Moulmein  in  order  to 
penetrate  the  dense  darkness  of  Rangoon,  although,  as 
Mr.  Judson  wrote,  "  it  seemed  harder  for  him  to  leave 
Moulmein  for  Rangoon  than  to  leave  Boston  for  Moul- 
mein." 

After  a  voyage  of  five  days  they  and  their  two  children 
arrived  in  Rangoon.  Mr.  Judson  had  previously  made  a 
visit  there  alone,  in  order  "  to  ascertain  the  state  of  things 
in  Burma  more  definitely  before  making  an  attempt  to 
settle  there."  He  had  on  that  occasion  hired,  for  fifty 
rupees  a  month,  the  upper  part  of  a  large  brick  house, 
which  Mrs.  Judson  subsequently  named  "  Bat  Castle."  ^  It 
was  a  place  dreary  indeed,  and  destitute  of  almost  all  out- 
ward comforts.  Before  engaging  the  house  he  wrote  to 
Mrs.  Judson :  "  The  place  looks  as  gloomy  as  a  prison. 
.  .  .  I  shrink  at  taking  you  and  the  children  into  such  a 
den,  and  fear  you  would  pine  and  die  in  it."  It  was  into 
this  forbidding  abode  that  he  introduced  the  lady  to  whom 
he  had  been  so  recently  married.    He  wrote : 

"  We  have  had  a  grand  bat  hunt  to-day — bagged  two 
hundred  and  fifty,  and  calculate  to  make  up  a  round 
thousand  before  we  have  done." 

1  In  a  charming  letter  to  her  sister,  Miss  Kate  Chubbuck,  in  whose  arms  she 
died  at  Hamilton,  on  the  1st  of  June,  1854,  and  who,  the  last  ol  her  family, 
having  cai-ed  for  all  the  rest  in  their  sickness  and  declining  years,  was  only 
recently  laid  to  rest,  at  a  good  old  age,  by  her  sister's  side,  in  the  Hamilton 
Cemetery. 


160 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


The  Judsons  were  scarcely  settled  in  these  unpromising 
quarters  when  they  learned  that  the  house  in  Moulmein, 
where  they  had  deposited  their  best  clothing  and  most 
valuable  goods — many  of  them  presents  from  dear  friends 
whom  they  were  to  see  no  more — had  taken  fire  and  had 
been  burned  to  the  ground  with  all  its  contents.  They  had 
brought  but  a  few  articles  with  them,  not  being  willing 
to  trust  the  most  valuable  part  of  their  pei'sonal  effects  to 
the  rapacious  government  at  Rangoon.  They  had  thought 
it  best  to  draw  their  supplies  from  Moulmein,  and  now 
the  precious  consignment  of'  articles  which  they  had 
brought  with  them  from  their  dear  native  land  had  been 
consumed  in  the  flames.  But  Mr.  Judson  had  long  since 
mastered  the  science  of  contentment.  He  had  been  in- 
structed both  "  to  be  full  and  to  be  hungry ;  both  to 
abound  and  to  suffer  need." 

Missionary  operations  in  Rangoon  were  obstructed 
from  the  very  outset  by  the  intolerance  of  the  Burmese 
Government.  It  must  be  remembered  that  the  mission- 
aries were  no  longer  under  the  protection  of  the  English 
flag,  as  they  had  been  at  Moulmein.  They  were  exposed 
to  the  barbarities  of  a  bigoted  and  unlimited  despotism. 
The  Burman  monarch  and  his  younger  brother,  the  heir 
apparent,  were  both  rigid  Buddhists.  And  the  admin- 
istration of  the  government,  though  more  friendly  to 
strangers,  had  become  more  doggedly  intolerant  of  Chris- 
tianity than  that  of  the  late  king.  Buddhism  was  in  full 
force  throughout  the  empire,  and  the  prospects  of  a  mis- 
sionary were  never  darker.  The  vice-governor  of  Ran- 
goon, who  was  at  that  time  acting  governor,  is  described 
by  Mr.  Judson  as  being  the  most  ferocious,  bloodthirsty 
monster  he  had  ever  known  in  Burma.  His  house  and 
courtyard  resounded  day  and  night  with  the  screams  of 


LAST  YEARS 


161 


people  under  torture.  It  must  be  remembered  that  Mr. 
Judson  had  been  received  and  patronized  by  the  govern- 
ment, not  as  a  missionary  or  propagator  of  religion,  but 
as  the  priest  of  a  foreign  religion,  ministering  to  the 
foreigners  in  the  place. 

Missionary  operations,  accordingly,  had  to  be  conducted 
with  the  utmost  secrecy.  Any  known  attempt  at  proselyt- 
ing would  have  been  instantly  amenable  at  the  criminal 
tribunal,  and  would  probably  have  been  punished  by  the 
imprisonment  or  death  of  the  proselyte,  and  the  banish- 
ment of  the  missionary.  Nothing  but  a  wholesome  fear 
of  the  British  Government  kept  these  bloodthirsty  wretches 
from  the  throat  of  the  missionary  himself.  Every  step 
was  cautious,  every  movement  slow.  Mrs.  Judson  quietly 
pursued  the  two  tasks  of  learning  the  language  and  writ- 
ing a  memorial  of  Mrs.  Sarah  Boardman  Judson,  which 
was  finished  during  this  trying  period  at  Rangoon.  Mr. 
Judson  kept  at  work  on  the  dictionary,  while  he  gathered 
for  secret  worship  the  few  scattered  members  of  the  native 
church,  and  the  inquirers  who,  at  the  risk  of  imprison- 
ment and  death,  visited  him  by  night. 

The  condition  of  the  missionaries  in  Rangoon  was  made 
still  more  distressing  by  reason  of  sickness.  The  great 
brick  house  became  a  hospital.  One  member  of  the 
family  after  another  was  prostrated  by  disease.  Their 
maladies  were  also  aggravated  by  the  want  of  nourishing 
food.  To  what  straits  the  family  was  reduced  for  food 
may  be  seen  in  the  following  sketch  from  Mrs.  Judson's 
pen : 

"Our  milk  is  a  mixture  of  buffaloes*  milk,  water,  and 
something  else  which  we  cannot  make  out.  We  have 
changed  our  milk-woman  several  times,  but  it  does  no 
good.    The  butter  we  make  from  it  is  like  lard  with  flakes 

L. 


162 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


of  tallow.  But  it  is  useless  to  write  about  these  things — 
you  can  get  no  idea.  I  must  tell  you,  howeverj  of  the 
grand  dinner  we  had  one  day,  *  You  must  contrive  and 
get  something  that  mamma  can  eat,'  the  doctor  said  to 
our  Burmese  purveyor  ;  '  she  will  starve  to  death.' 

"'What  shall  I  get?' 

" '  Anything.' 

" '  Anything  ?  ' 

" '  Anything.' 

"  Well,  we  did  have  a  capital  dinner,  though  we  tried 
in  vain  to  find  out  by  the  bones  what  it  was.  Henry  said 
it  was  touk-tahs,  a  species  of  lizard,  and  I  should  have 
thought  so  too,  if  the  little  animal  had  been  of  a  fleshy 
consistence.  Cook  said  he  didn't  knotv,  but  he  grinned  a 
horrible  grin  which  made  my  stomach  heave  a  little,  not- 
withstanding the  deliciousness  of  the  meat.  In  the  even- 
ing we  called  Mr.  Bazaar-man. 

"'What  did  we  have  for  dinner  to-day?' 

" '  Were  they  good  ? ' 

"'Excellent.'  A  tremendous  explosion  of  laughter, 
in  which  the  cook  from  his  dish-room  joined  as  loud  as 
he  dared. 

"'What  were  they?' 

" '  Rats ! ' 

"  A  common  servant  would  not  have  played  such  a 
trick,  but  it  was  one  of  the  doctor's  assistants  who  goes 
to  the  bazaar  for  us.  You  know  the  Chinese  consider  rats 
a  great  delicacy,  and  he  bought  them  at  one  of  their 
shops." 

But  amid  all  the  discouragements  and  sufferings  of  his 
life  in  Rangoon,  Mr.  Judson  did  not  lapse  into  despond- 
ency. At  last,  however,  the  intolerance  of  the  govern- 
ment became  so  fierce  that  there  was  no  hope  of  retaining 


LAST  YEARS 


163 


a  foothold  in  Rangoon  without  going  to  Ava  in  order  to 
secure  the  favor  of  the  royal  court. 

Mr.  Judson's  heart  was  set  upon  this.  He  believed 
that  it  was  the  only  way  by  which  the  gospel  could  be 
established  in  Burma  proper ;  besides,  in  the  completion 
of  his  dictionary,  he  desired  to  avail  himself  of  the  help 
of  the  scholars  and  the  literature  to  be  found  only  at  the 
capital.  And  bitter  indeed  was  his  disappointment  when 
the  policy  of  retrenchment  at  home  not  only  prevented 
his  pushing  on  to  Ava,  but  also  compelled  him  to  retreat 
from  Rangoon.  It  was  with  an  almost  broken  heart  that 
this  wise  and  intrepid  leader,  after  his  last  fruitless  effort 
to  break  the  serried  ranks  of  Burman  intolerance,  re- 
turned to  Moulmein  in  obedience  to  the  timid  and  narrow 
policy  of  his  brethren  in  America.    He  wrote : 

"  It  is  my  growing  conviction  that  the  Baptist  churches 
in  America  are  behind  the  age  in  missionary  spirit. 
They  now  and  then  make  a  spasmodic  effort  to  throw  off 
a  nightmare  debt  of  some  years'  accumulation,  and  then 
sink  back  into  unconscious  repose.  Then  come  paralyzing 
orders  to  retrench ;  new  enterprises  are  checked  in  their 
very  conception,  and  applicants  for  missionary  employ 
are  advised  to  wait,  and  soon  become  merged  in  the 
ministry  at  home.  Several  cases  of  that  sort  I  encoun- 
tered during  my  late  visit  to  the  United  States.  This 
state  of  things  cannot  last  always.  The  Baptist  missions 
will  probably  pass  into  the  hands  of  other  denominations, 
or  be  temporarily  suspended ;  and  those  who  have  occu- 
pied the  van  will  fall  back  into  the  rear.  Nebuchadnez- 
zar will  be  driven  out  from  men,  to  eat  grass  like  an  ox, 
until  seven  times  pass  over  him.  But  he  will,  at  length, 
recover  his  senses,  and  be  restored  to  the  throne  of  his 
kingdom,  and  reign  over  the  whole  earth." 


164 


ADONIEAM  JUDSON 


Two  years  afterward,  only  a  few  months  before  bis 
deatb,  be  received  permission  from  tbe  Board  to  go  to 
Ava. 

But  tbis  permission  came  too  late.  Tbe  opportunity 
of  penetrating  Burma  proper  bad  passed,  and  tbe  aid  of 
an  excellent  Burmese  scbolar,  once  a  priest  at  Ava,  had 
been  secured  at  Moulmein,  Thus,  after  spending  half  a 
year  of  toil  and  suffering  at  Rangoon,  be  was  compelled 
to  fall  back  upon  Moulmein.  He  arrived  there  with  his 
family  on  September  5,  1847. 

During  this  experience  of  repulse,  occasioned  by  the 
inertness  of  Christians  at  home,  it  would  have  consoled 
him  could  be  have  foreseen  that  the  very  point  which  he 
so  ardently  desired  to  reach  and  occupy,  would  subse- 
quently become  the  site  of  a  vigorous  native  church,  and 
that  a  beautiful  bouse  of  worship  would  be  erected  as  bis 
monument  in  the  heart  of  tbe  Burman  empire  at  INIan- 
dalay,  to  which  tbe  capital  has  been  transferred  from  old 
Ava,  only  a  few  miles  distant. 

His  wife,  in  one  of  her  letters,  thus  describes  bis  inde- 
fatigable industry : 

"  Tbe  good  man  works  like  a  galley  slave,  and  really 
it  quite  distresses  me  sometimes ;  but  he  seems  to  get  fat 
on  it,  so  I  try  not  to  worry.  He  walks — or  rather  ru7is — 
like  a  boy  over  tbe  hills,  a  mile  or  two  every  morning ; 
then  down  to  his  books,  scratch-scratch,  puzzle-puzzle,  and 
when  he  gets  deep  in  the  mire,  out  on  tbe  veranda  with 
your  humble  servant  by  his  side,  walking  and  talking 
(kan-ing  we  call  it  in  the  Burman)  till  the  point  is  elu- 
cidated, and  then  down  again ;  and  so  on  till  ten  o'clock 
in  tbe  evening.  It  is  tbis  walking  which  is  keeping  him 
out  of  tbe  grave." 

At  the  same  time  be  took  a  general  oversight  of  the 


LAST  YEARS 


165 


mission  work  in  Moulmein,  being,  in  the  nature  of  the 
case,  a  guiding  and  inspiring  force.  He  preached  occa- 
sionally in  the  native  chapel,  "  one  sermon,  at  least,  every 
Lord's  Day."  When  his  beloved  fellow-missionary,  Mr. 
Haswell,  was  compelled  to  return  home  for  a  short  visit 
on  account  of  his  ill  health,  the  whole  care  of  the  native 
church  devolved  on  him. 

These  literary  and  pastoral  labors  were,  however,  light- 
ened by  social  and  domestic  pleasures.  Though  he  had 
come  to  the  ripe  age  of  sixty,  he  had  within  him  the  fresh 
heart  of  a  boy.  It  has  been  truly  said  of  him  that  his 
spirit  was  intensely,  unconquerably  youthful.  He  loved 
to  romp  with  his  children,  and  early  in  the  morning  to 
brush 

With  hasty  steps  the  dew  away 

In  a  life  of  self-sacrifice  he  had  discovered  the  peren- 
nial fountain  of  joy.  While  he  followed  the  narrow  path 
of  stern  duty,  the  butterfly  pleasure  which  the  worldling 
chases  from  flower  to  flower  had  flown  into  his  bosom. 
Byron,  on  his  thirty-ninth  birthday,  breathed  the  sigh : 

My  days  are  in  the  yellow  leaf, 
The  flower  and  fruits  of  life  are  gone ; 

The  worm,  the  canker,  and  the  grief 
Are  mine  alone. 

How  difierent  Judson's  words  uttered  on  his  death-bed . 

"  I  suppose  they  think  me  an  old  man,  and  imagine  it 
is  nothing  for  one  like  me  to  resign  a  life  so  full  of  trials. 
But  I  am  not  old — at  least  in  that  sense ;  you  know  I 
am  not.  Oh,  no  man  ever  left  the  world  with  more  in- 
viting prospects,  with  brighter  hopes,  or  warmer  feel- 
ings— warmer  feelings." 

We  are  indebted  for  the  following  description  of  his 


166 


ADONIEAM  JUDSON 


personal  appearance  at  this  time  to  Dr.  Wayland  s 
memoir : 

"In  person,  Dr.  Judson  was  of  about  the  medium 
height,  slenderly  built,  but  compactly  knitted  together. 
His  complexion  was  in  youth  fair ;  but  residence  in  India 
had  given  him  the  sallow  hue  common  to  that  climate. 
His  hair,  when  in  this  country,  was  yet  of  a  fine  chestnut, 
with  scarcely  a  trace  of  gray.  The  elasticity  of  his  move- 
ment indicated  a  man  of  thirty,  rather  than  of  nearly 
sixty  years  of  age.  His  deportment  was,  in  a  remarkable 
degree,  quiet  and  self-possessed,  and  his  manner  was 
pointed  out  as  perfectly  well-bred  by  those  who  consider 
the  cultivation  of  social  accomplishments  the  serious 
business  of  life.  A  reviewer  writes  on  this  subject  as 
follows : 

"'A  person  overtaking  Judson  in  one  of  his  early 
morning  walks,  as  he  strode  along  the  pagoda-capped 
hills  of  Moulmein,  would  have  thought  the  pedestrian 
before  him  rather  under-sized,  and  of  a  build  showing  no 
great  muscular  development ;  although  the  pace  was 
good  and  the  step  firm,  yet  there  was  nothing  to  indicate 
great  powers  of  physical  endurance  in  the  somewhat 
slight  and  spare  frame  tramping  steadily  in  front  of  the 
observer.  The  latter  would  scarcely  suppose  that  he  had 
before  him  the  man  who,  on  the  25th  of  March,  1826, 
wrote :  "  Through  the  kind  interposition  of  our  Heavenly 
Father,  our  lives  have  been  preserved  in  the  most  im- 
minent danger  from  the  hand  of  the  executioner,  and  in 
repeated  instances  of  most  alarming  illness,  during  my 
protracted  imprisonment  of  one  year  and  seven  months ; 
nine  months  in  three  pairs  of  fetters,  two  months  in  five, 
six  months  in  one,  and  two  months  a  prisoner  at  large." 
Illness  nigh  unto  death,  and  three  or  five  pairs  of  fetters 


LAST  YEARS 


167 


to  aid  in  weighing  down  the  shattered  and  exhausted 
frame,  seemed  a  dispensation  calculated  for  the  endurance 
of  a  far  more  muscular  build.  But  meet  the  man,  in- 
stead of  overtaking  him ;  or,  better  still,  cee  him  enter  a 
room  and  bare  his  head,  and  the  observer  at  once  caught 
an  eye  beaming  with  intelligence,  a  countenance  full  of 
life  and  expression.  Attention  could  scarcely  fail  of  being 
riveted  on  that  head  and  face,  which  told  at  once  that 
the  spiritual  and  intellectual  formed  the  man ;  the  physi- 
cal was  wholly  subordinate,  and  must  have  been  borne 
through  its  trials  by  the  more  essential  elements  of  the 
individual,  by  the  feu  sacri,  which  predominated  in  his 
disposition.  Nor  was  this  impression  weakened  by  his 
conversation.  Wisdom  and  piety  were,  as  might  be  ex- 
pected in  such  a  man,  its  general  tone  ;  but  there  was  a 
vivacity  pervading  it  which  indicated  strong,  buoyant, 
though  well,  it  may  be  said  very  severely,  disciplined 
animal  spirits.  Wit  too  was  there,  playful,  pure,  free 
from  malice,  and  a  certain  quiet  Cervantic  humor,  full 
of  benignity,  would  often  enliven  and  illustrate  what  he 
had  to  say  on  purely  temporal  alfairs.' " 

To  his  fellow-missionaries  his  wide  experience  and 
affectionate  disposition  made  him  an  invaluable  adviser 
and  friend.  When  they  found  themselves  in  trouble  and 
sorrow  they  were  sure  to  receive  from  his  lips  words  of 
comfort  and  counsel.  The  great  pressure  of  his  public 
cares  and  other  labors  did  not  make  him  moody  or 
absent-minded  at  home.  His  love  for  his  children  was 
deep  and  tender,  as  attested  by  his  exquisite  letters  to  his 
daughter,  Abby,  who  was  living  at  Bradford  in  the  old 
homestead  of  the  Hasseltine  family,  and  to  his  boys, 
Adoniram  and  Elnathan,  who  were  pursuing  their  studies 
in  Worcester. 


168 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


The  two  little  boys  who  formed  a  part  of  the  family 
group  at  Moulmein,  often  found  in  their  father  an  ardent 
companion  in  their  play.  One  of  them  well  remembers 
how  his  father  used  to  come  into  his  room  in  the  morn- 
ing and  greet  him  upon  his  first  awakening  with  a  deli- 
cious piece  of  Burmese  cake,  or  with  the  joyful  tidings 
that  a  rat  had  been  caught  in  the  trap  the  night  before. 
He  wrote  to  Mr.  Stevens  in  Rangoon  : 

"  I  have  to  hold  a  meeting  with  the  rising  generation 
every  evening,  and  that  takes  time.  Henry  can  say, '  Twin- 
kle, twinkle,'  all  himself,  and  Edward  can  repeat  it  after 
his  father !    Giants  of  genius !  paragons  of  erudition !  " 

On  December  24,  1847,  Emily  Frances  Judson^  was 
born  at  Moulmein.  The  happy  mother  addressed  to  her 
infant  the  following  exquisite  lines,  which  have  been  since 
treasured  in  so  many  hearts  throughout  the  world : 

MY  BIRD. 

Ere  last  year's  moon  had  left  the  sky 
A  birdling  sought  my  Indian  nest, 

And  folded,  0,  so  lovingly  1  • 
Her  tiny  wings  upon  my  breast. 

From  morn  till  evening's  purple  tinge 

In  winsome  helplessness  she  lies; 
Two  rose  leaves,  with  a  silken  fringe. 

Shut  softly  on  her  starry  eyes. 

There's  not  in  Ind  a  lovelier  bird  ; 

Broad  earth  owns  not  a  happier  nest ; 
O  God,  thou  hast  a  fountain  stirred, 

Whose  waters  never  more  shall  restl 

This  beautiful,  mysterious  thing. 
This  seeming  visitant  from  heaven — 


» Now  the  wife  of  the  Rev.  T.  A.  T.  Hanna,  Pottsville,  Pa. 


LAST  YEAES 


ISS 


This  bird  with  the  immortal  wing, 
To  me— to  me,  thy  hand  hath  given. 

The  pulse  first  caught  its  tiny  stroke. 
The  blood  its  crimson  hue  from  mine; 

This  life,  which  I  have  dared  invoke. 
Henceforth  is  parallel  with  thine. 

A  silent  awe  is  in  my  room  ; 

I  tremble  with  delicious  fear ; 
The  future  with  its  light  and  gloom, — 

Time  and  eternity  are  here. 

Doubts — hopes,  in  eager  tumult  rise ; 

Hear,  O  my  God  1  one  earnest  prayer : 
Koom  for  my  bird  in  paradise. 

And  give  her  angel-plumage  there ! 

But  dark  shadows  began  to  gather  around  the  path  of 
the  missionary.  Soon  after  the  birth  of  Emily,  Mrs. 
Judson's  health  began  perceptibly  to  decline  and  to  cause 
him  doleful  forebodings.  Little  did  he  imagine  that  in 
the  journey  through  the  valley  of  the  shadow  of  death,  he 
was  to  precede  his  wife  by  several  years.  In  November, 
1849,  he  was  attacked  by  the  disease  which,  after  a 
period  of  a  little  over  four  months,  culminated  in  his 
death.  One  night,  while  sharing  with  Mrs.  Judson  the 
care  of  one  of  the  children  who  had  been  taken  suddenly 
ill,  he  caught  a  severe  cold.  This  settled  on  his  lungs 
and  produced  a  terrible  cough  with  some  fever.  After 
three  or  four  days,  he  was  attacked  with  dysentery,  apd 
before  this  was  subdued  a  congestive  fever  set  in,  from 
which  he  never  recovered.  A  trip  down  the  coast  of 
Mergui  afforded  only  partial  relief.  Pie  tried  the  sea  at 
Amherst,  but  only  sank  the  more  rapidly,  and  then 
hastened  back  to  Moulmein.  The  following  is  his  last 
communication  to  the  Board  : 


170 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


MouLMEiN,  February  21,  1850. 
"  To  the  Corresponding  Secretary. 

"  My  Dear  Brother  : — I  cannot  manage  a  pen,  so 
please  excuse  pencil.  I  have  been  prostrated  with 
fever  ever  since  the  latter  part  of  last  November,  and 
have  suffered  so  much  that  I  have  frequently  remarked 
that  I  was  never  ill  in  India  before.  Through  the  mercy 
of  God,  I  think  I  am  convalescent  for  the  last  ten  days ; 
but  the  doctor  and  all  my  friends  are  very  urgent  that  I 
should  take  a  sea  voyage  of  a  month  or  two,  and  be 
absent  from  here  a  long  time.  May  God  direct  in  the 
path  of  duty.  My  hand  is  failing,  so  I  will  beg  to  remain 
"  Yours  affectionately, 

"  A.  JuDSON." 

His  only  hope  now  lay  in  a  long  sea  voyage.  He  was 
never  so  happy  as  when  upon  the  ocean.  The  salt 
breezes  had  never  failed  to  invigorate  him.  But  it  was 
a  sore  trial  to  part  with  his  wife  and  children  when  there 
was  but  little  prospect  of  ever  seeing  them  again. 

There  was,  however,  no  alternative.  A  French  bark, 
the  "  Aristide  Marie,"  was  to  sail  from  Moulmein  on  the 
3d  of  April.  The  dying  missionary  was  carried  on  board 
by  his  weeping  disciples,  accompanied  only  by  Mr. 
Rauney,  of  the  Moulmein  mission.  There  were  unfortu- 
nate delays  in  going  down  the  river,  so  that  several  days 
were  lost.  Meantime  that  precious  life  was  ebbing  rap- 
idly away.  It  was  not  until  Monday  the  8th,  that  the 
vessel  got  out  to  sea.  Then  came  head  winds  and  sultry 
weather,  and  after  four  days  and  nights  of  intense  agony, 
Mr.  Judson  breathed  his  last  on  the  12th  of  April,  1850, 
and  on  the  same  day  his  body  was  buried  in  the  sea,  with- 
out a  prayer.    He  died  within  a  week  from  the  time  that 


LAST  YEARS 


171 


he  parted  with  hia  wife,  and  almost  four  months  of  terri- 
ble suspense  elapsed  before  she  learned  of  his  death. 
The  tidings  were  sent  to  her  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Mackay,  a 
Scotch  Presbyterian  minister  of  Calcutta.  Who  can 
fathom  her  experience  of  suffering  during  those  weary 
months  of  waiting !  On  the  22d  of  April,  within  three 
weeks  of  the  time  when  she  said  farewell  to  her  husband, 
exactly  ten  days  after  his  body,  without  her  knowledge, 
had  found  its  resting-place  in  the  sea,  she  gave  birth  to 
a  second  child,  whom  she  named  Charles  for  her  father. 
But  the  same  day  his  little  spirit,  as  though  unwilling  to 
linger  amid  such  scenes  of  desolation,  took  its  upward 
flight  to  be  forever  united  with  the  parent  who  had 
entered  the  gates  of  paradise  only  a  little  in  advance. 


CHAPTER  XIII 


POSTHUMOUS  INFLUENCE 

MR.  JUDSON  did  not  live  to  complete  the  Burmese 
dictionary.  He  finished  the  English  and  Burmese 
part,  but  the  Burmese  and  English  was  left  in  an  un- 
finished state.  In  accordance  with  his  desire,  expressed 
only  a  few  days  before  his  death,  Mrs.  Judson  transmitted 
his  manuscripts  to  his  trusted  friend  and  associate  in  mis- 
sionary toil,  Mr.  Stevens,  upon  whom  accordingly  the 
task  of  completing  the  work  devolved. 

During  the  long  winter  of  our  Northern  States  some- 
times a  mass  of  snow  accumulates,  little  by  little,  in  the 
corner  of  the  farmer's  meadow.  Under  the  warm  rays 
of  the  spring  sun  the  dazzling  bank  gradually  melts 
away,  but  leaves  upon  the  greensward,  which  it  has 
sheltered,  a  fertilizing  deposit.  It  now  remains  for  us  to 
ask  what  stimulating  residuum  this  great  life  which  we 
have  attempted  to  describe  left  behind  it  upon  the  surface 
of  human  society. 

Mr.  Judson's  achievements  far  transcended  the  wildest 
aspirations  of  his  youth.  During  the  early  years  in  Ran- 
goon, when  the  mighty  purpose  of  evangelizing  Burma 
began  to  take  definite  shape  in  his  mind ;  even  before  the 
first  convert,  Moung  Nau,  was  baptized ;  when,  indeed, 
the  young  missionary  was  almost  forgotten  by  his  fellow- 
Christians  at  home,  or  merely  pitied  as  a  good-hearted 
enthusiast,  the  outermost  limit  reached  by  his  strong- 
winged  hope  was  that  he  might,  before  he  died,  build  up 
172 


POSTHUMOUS  INFLUENCE 


173 


a  church  of  a  hundred  converted  Burmans,  and  translate 
the  whole  Bible  into  their  language.  But  far  more  than 
this  was  accomplished  during  the  ten  years  in  Rangoon, 
the  two  years  in  Ava,  and  the  twenty-three  years  in 
Moulmein.  At  the  time  of  his  death  the  native  Chris- 
tians (Burmans  and  Karens  publicly  baptized  upon  the 
profession  of  their  faith)  numbered  over  seven  thousand. 
Besides  this,  hundreds  throughout  Burma  had  died  re- 
joicing in  the  Christian  faith.  He  had  not  only  finished, 
the  translation  of  the  Bible,  but  had  accomplished  tlic 
larger  and  the  more  difficult  part  of  the  compilation  of  a 
Burmese  dictionary.  At  the  time  of  his  death  there  were 
sixty-three  churches  established  among  the  Burmans  and 
Karens.  These  churches  were  under  the  oversight  of  one 
hundred  and  sixty-three  missionaries,  native  pastors,  and 
assistants.  He  had  laid  the  foundations  of  Christianity 
deep  down  in  the  Burman  heart,  where  they  could  never 
be  swept  away. 

This  achievement  is  the  more  startling  when  we  con- 
sider that  all  divine  operations  are  slow  in  the  beginning, 
but  rush  to  the  consummation  with  lightning  speed. 
Many  long  days  elapse  while  the  icy  barriers  are  being 
slowly  loosened  beneath  the  breath  of  spring.  But  at 
last  the  freshet  comes,  and  the  huge  frozen  masses  are 
broken  up  and  carried  rapidly  to  the  sea.  The  leaves 
slowly  ripen  for  the  grave.  Though  withered,  they  still 
cling  to  the  boughs.  But  finally  a  day  comes  in  the 
autumn  when  suddenly  the  air  is  full  of  falling  foliage. 
It  takes  a  long  time  for  the  apple  to  reach  its  growth,  but 
a  very  brief  time  suffices  for  the  ripening.  Tennyson's 
Icrk 

Shook  his  song  together  as  he  neared 
His  happy  home,  the  ground. 


174 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


Nature  is  instinct  with  this  law,  and  we  may  well  be- 
lieve that  though  the  processes  are  slow  and  inconspicuous 
by  which  the  ancient  structures  of  false  religions  are 
being  undermined,  yet  the  time  will  come  when  they  will 
tumble  suddenly  into  ruins;  when  a  nation  shall  be  con- 
verted in  a  day;  when,  "As  earth  bringeth  forth  her  bud 
and  as  the  garden  causeth  the  things  that  are  sown  in  it 
to  spring  forth,  so  the  Lord  will  cause  righteousness  and 
praise  to  spring  forth  before  all  the  nations."  In  the  bap- 
tism of  ten  thousand  Telugus  in  India  within  a  single 
year,  do  we  not  already  see  the  gray  dawn  of  such  an  era 
of  culmination? 

We  are  living,  we  are  dwelling 

In  a  grand  and  awful  time; 
In  an  age  on  ages  telling, 

To  be  living  is  sublime. 
Hark!  the  waking  up  of  nations, 

Gog  and  Magog  to  the  fray. 
Harkl  what  soundeth?  'Tis  creation 

Groaning  for  its  latter  day. 

But  it  was  Mr.  Judson's  lot  to  labor  in  the  hard  and 
obscure  period  of  the  first  beginnings.  And  not  only  so, 
but  he  undertook  the  task  of  planting  Christianity  not 
among  a  people  like  the  Sandwich  Islanders,  without 
literature  and  without  an  elaborate  religious  system,  but 
rather  in  a  soil  already  pre-occupied  by  an  ancient  classi- 
cal literature  and  by  a  time-honored  ritual,  which  now 
numbers  among  its  devotees  one-third  of  the  population 
of  our  globe. 

When  these  considerations  are  taken  into  account,  the 
tangible  results  which  Mr.  Judson  left  behind  at  his  death 
seem  simply  amazing.  But  these  are  only  a  small  part 
of  what  he  really  accomplished.    Being  dead,  he  yet 


POSTHUMOUS  INFLUENCE 


175 


speaketh.  The  Roman  Church  has  preserved  an  old 
legend  that  John,  the  beloved  disciple,  "did  not  die  at 
all,  but  is  only  slumbering,  and  moving  the  grave  mound 
with  his  breath  until  the  final  return  of  the  Lord."  And 
in  a  sense  it  is  true  that  a  great  man  does  not  die.  You 
cannot  bury  a  saint  so  deep  that  he  will  not  move  those 
who  walk  over  his  grave.  The  upheavals  of  society  are 
mainly  due  to  the  breath  of  those  who  have  vanished 
from  the  earth  and  lie  beneath  its  bosom. 

The  early  action  of  Mr.  Judson  and  his  fellow-students 
at  Andover  resulted  in  the  formation  of  the  American 
Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign  Missions.  This 
society,  representing  the  Congregationalists  of  this  country, 
may  justly  claim  to  be  the  mother  of  American  foreign 
missionary  bodies.  It  was  organized  for  the  support  of 
certain  young  men  while  they  were  engaged  in  the  work 
to  which  the  Lord  called  them.  Institutions,  according 
to  Emerson,  are  the  lengthened  shadows  of  individual 
men.  Societies  do  not  call  men  into  being,  but  men 
create  societies.  The  society  is  only  a  convenient  vehicle 
through  which  the  Christian  at  home  can  send  bread  to 
the  missionary  abroad,  whose  whole  time  is  devoted  to 
feeding  the  heathen  with  the  bread  of  life. 

In  the  year  1892,  the  American  Board  of  Commission- 
ers for  Foreign  Missions  received  and  expended  eight 
hundred  and  forty-one  thousand  dollars.  It  is  conduct- 
ing successful  missionary  operations  in  Africa,  Turkey, 
India,  China,  Japan,  Micronesia,  the  Hawaiian  Islands, 
Mexico,  Spain,  and  Austria.  In  these  different  countries 
it  has  four  hundred  and  forty-four  churches,  forty-one 
thousand  five  hundred  and  twenty-two  church-members, 
and  three  thousand  two  hundred  and  ninety-eiglit  mis- 
sionaries, native  pastors,  teachers,  and  assistants. 


176 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


The  change  iu  Mr.  Judson's  views  on  the  subject  of 
baptism  led  almost  immediately  to  the  formation  of  a 
Baptist  Missionary  Society,  now  known  as  the  American 
Baptist  Missionary  Union.  During  the  year  ending 
May  1,  1893,  there  passed  through  the  treasury  of  tliis 
Svjciety  seven  hundred  and  sixty-six  thousand,  seven 
hundred  and  eighty-two  dollars  and  ninety-five  cents, 
given  by  the  Baptists  of  the  United  Staies  for  the  evan- 
gelization of  the  heathen.  This  society  is  at  work  in 
Burma,  Siam,  India,  China,  Japan,  Africa,  and  also  in 
the  countries  of  Europe,  and  it  reported,  in  1893,  one 
thousand  five  hundred  and  thirty- one  churches,  over  one 
hundred  and  sixty-nine  thousand  church-members,  eighty- 
five  thousand  six  hundred  and  eighty-four  Sunday-school 
scholars,  as  well  as  two  thousand  and  seventy  preachers. 

A  few  years  after  Mr.  Judson's  departure  from  this 
country,  and  organization  of  these  two  societies,  the  Epis- 
copalians and  also  the  Methodists  of  America  organized 
for  the  work  of  foreign  missions.  For  many  years  the  Pres- 
byterians joined  the  Congregationalists,  and  poured  their 
contributions  into  the  treasury  of  the  American  Board. 
But  in  1836  they  organized  a  society,  now  known  as  the 
Board  of  Foreign  Missions  of  the  Presbyterian  Church. 
Its  fields  of  operation  are  Syria,  Persia,  J  apan,  China,  Siam, 
India,  Africa,  South  America,  Central  America,  and 
Mexico,  with  an  expenditure  in  1893  of  one  million  sixty- 
three  thousand  six  hundred  and  forty-five  dollars  and 
sixty-five  cents.  It  supports  two  thousand  two  hundred 
and  seventy  missionaries  and  lay  missionaries,  and  reports 
three  hundred  and  ninety-eight  churches  with  thirty-one 
thousand  three  hundred  and  twenty-four  communicants, 
and  twenty-eight  thousand  nine  hundred  and  eighty-three 
scholars  in  the  native  schools. 


POSTHUMOUS  INFLUENCE 


177 


All  these  vigorous  Christian  societies.,  sustained  by  the 
missionary  conviction  of  the  churches  in  America,  with 
their  vast  army  of  missionaries  and  native  communicants 
now  pressing  against  the  systems  of  heathenism  at  a  thou- 
sand points,  when  they  come  to  tell  the  story  of  their 
origin  do  not  fail  to  make  mention  of  the  name  of 
Adoniram  Judson.  His  life  formed  a  part  of  the  fount- 
ain-head from  which  flow  these  beneficent  streams  which 
fringe  with  verdure  the  wastes  of  paganism. 

And  in  other  lands  than  America  has  Mr.  Judson'a 
career  of  heroic  action  and  suffering  proved  an  inspira- 
tion to  churches  of  every  name. 

But  not  ouly  in  the  foreign  mission  enterprise  has  the 
power  of  his  example  been  felt.  Work  among  the 
heathen  is  sure  to  react  upon  Christians  at  home,  and 
impel  them  to  work  for  the  heathen  at  their  doors.  The 
missionary  spirit  is  all  one,  within  foreign  parts  or  on 
Western  prairies  or  in  the  slums  of  our  great  towns.  A 
zeal  which  is  not  deaf  to  the  cry  of  the  perishing  millions 
in  China  and  Africa  can  be  relied  upon  for  continuous 
effort  in  home  mission  work.  A  rifle  which  can  be 
depended  upon  at  a  thousand  yards  will  not  fail  you 
when  fired  point-blank.  It  is  not  unfitting  that  in  New 
York  a  monument  should  rise  to  Adoniram  Judson,  sug- 
gestive of  the  organic  unity  of  Foreign  Missions,  Home 
Missions,  and  City  Missions. 

There  are  very  few  of  those  who  have  gone  from  this 
country  as  missionaries  to  the  heathen  who  are  not  in- 
debted to  Mr.  Judson  for  methods  and  inspiration.  The 
writer  will  not  soon  forget  a  scene  he  witnessed  at  Sara- 
toga in  May,  1880.  The  General  Assembly  of  the  Pres- 
byterian Church  was  in  session.  Dr.  Jessup,  an  eminent 
missionary  in  Syria,  then  on  a  visit  to  this  country,  had 


178 


ADONIEAM  JUDSON 


been  elected  moderator.  When  the  session  of  the  Assem- 
bly had  ended,  he  entered  the  convention  which  the 
.Baptists  were  then  holding  also  in  Saratoga.  As  an 
honored  guest  he  was  invited  to  speak.  There  was  a 
breathless  silence  through  the  house  as  the  veteran  mis- 
sionary arose,  and  with  inspiring  words  urged  the  prose- 
cution of  the  missionary  enterprise.  He  closed  by  saying 
that  when  he  should  arrive  in  heaven  the  first  person 
whose  hand  he  desired  to  grasp  next  to  the  Apostle  Paul 
would  be  Adoniram  Judson. 

A  life  which  embodies  Christ's  idea  of  complete  self- 
abnegation  cannot  but  become  a  great  object  lesson.  A 
man  cannot  look  into  the  mirror  of  such  a  career  without 
becoming  at  once  conscious  of  his  own  selfishness  and  of 
the  triviality  of  a  merely  worldly  life.  A  New  York 
merchant  in  his  boyhood  read  Wayland's  "Life  of 
Judson,"  and  laying  the  book  down  left  his  chamber, 
went  out  into  the  green  meadow  belonging  to  his  father's 
farm,  and  consecrated  his  young  life  to  the  service  of 
God. 

How  many  unknown  souls  have  been  attracted  to  Christ 
by  the  same  magnetism  !  How  many  others  have  been 
lifted  out  of  their  self-love !  How  many  have  been  drawn 
toward  the  serener  heights  of  Christian  experience  by  the 
example  of  him  whose  strong  aspirings  after  holiness  are 
depicted  in  "  The  Threefold  Cord  "  !  Oh,  that  some  young 
man  might  rise  from  the  reading  of  these  memoirs  and 
lay  down  his  life  in  all  its  freshness  and  strength  upon  the 
altar  of  God,  so  that  he  might  become  like  Paul  of  old, 
a  chosen  vessel  of  Christ  to  bear  his  name  before  the 
Gentiles  and  kings  and  the  children  of  Israel ! 

The  memory  of  Mr.  Judson's  sufferings  in  Ava  will 
never  cease  to  nerve  missionary  endeavor.    They  ap- 


POSTHUMOUS  INFLUENCE 


179 


peared  at  the  time  unnecessary  and  fruitless.  He  him- 
self, upon  emerging  from  them,  spoke  of  them  as  having 
been  "  unavailing  to  answer  any  valuable  missionary  pur- 
pose unless  so  far  as  they  may  have  been  silently  blessed 
to  our  spiritual  improvement  and  capacity  for  future  use- 
fulness." But  the  spectacle  of  our  missionary  lying  in  an 
Oriental  prison,  his  ankles  freighted  with  five  pairs  of 
irons,  his  heroic  wife  ministering  to  him  like  an  angel 
during  the  long  months  of  agony,  has  burned  itself  into 
the  consciousness  of  Christendom,  and  has  made  retreat 
from  the  missionary  enterprise  an  impossibility.  It  is 
God's  law  that  progress  should  be  along  the  line  of  sulfer- 
ing.  The  world's  benefactors  have  been  its  sufferers. 
They  "  have  been  from  time  immemorial  crucified  and 
burned."  ^  It  seems  to  be  a  divine  law  that  those  who 
pluck  and  bestow  roses  must  feel  thorns.  The  sufferings 
of  Mr.  Judson's  life  were  as  fruitful  of  blessing  as  the 
toils. 

The  graves  of  the  sainted  dead  forbid  retreat  from  the 
ramparts  of  heathenism.  It  is  said  that  the  heart  of  the 
Scottish  hero,  Bruce,  was  embalmed  after  his  death  and 
preserved  in  a  silver  casket.  When  his  descendants  were 
making  a  last  desperate  charge  upon  the  serried  columns 
of  the  Saracens,  their  leader  threw  this  casket  far  out 
into  the  ranks  of  the  enemy,  crying  "  Forward,  heart  of 
Bruce ! "  The  Scots  charged  with  irresistible  fury  in 
order  to  regain  the  heart  of  their  dead  king.  Into  the 
thick  of  heathenism  noble  men  have  penetrated  and 
fallen  there.  Christianity  will  never  retreat  from  the 
graves  of  its  dead  heroes.  England  is  pressing  into 
Africa  with  redoubled  energy  since  she  saw  placed  on  the 
pavement  of  her  own  Westminister  Abbey  the  marble 


1  Goethe. 


180 


ADONIRAM  JUDSON 


tablet  bearing  the  words:  "Brought  by  faithful  hands, 
over  land  and  sea,  David  Livingstone,  missionary,  traveler, 
philanthropist."  Until  that  day  shall  come  when  every 
knee  shall  bow  and  every  tongue  confess  the  name  of 
Jesus,  Christian  hearts  will  not  cease  to  draw  inspiration 
from  the  memory  of  those  who  found  their  last  resting- 
places  under  the  hopia-tree  at  Amherst,  on  the  rocky 
shore  of  St.  Helena,  and  beneath  the  stormy  breast  of  the 
Indian  Ocean. 


LITERATURE 


Memoir.  By  Rev.  Francis  Wayland,  D.  D.  Two  Vols 
12mo.    Boston,  1853. 

Memoir.    By  J.  Clement.    12mo.    Auburn,  N.  Y.,  1852. 

Records  op  Life,  Character,  and  Achievements  oi 
Adoniram  Jtjdson.  By  Rev.  D.  F.  Middleditcli.  12nio. 
New  York,  1854. 

The  Earnest  Man:  A  Sketch  op  the  Character  and 
Labors  op  the  Rkv.  Adoniram  Judson.  By  Mrs. 
H.  C.  Con  ant.   8vo.    Boston,  1856. 

Ann  Hasseltine  Judson.  By  Rev.  James  D.  Knowlcs. 
Boston,  1829.    (Many  times  reprinted.) 

Sarah  Boardman  Jtjdson.  ■  By  Mrs.  Emily  C.  Judson. 
18mo.    New  York,  1850. 

Emily  Chubbuck  Judson.  By  Dr.  A.  0.  Kendrick.  12mo. 
New  York,  1860. 

The  Lives  op  the  Three  Mrs.  Jttdsons.  By  Mrs.  A.  M. 
Wilson.    New  York,  1851-55. 

Missionary  Memorials  :  Ann  H.  ;  Sarah  B.  ;  and  Emily  C. 
Judson.   By  W.  N.  Wyeth,  D.  D.    Philadelphia,  1894. 


181 


LITERARY  WORKS  OF  DR.  JUDSON 


Translation  of  the  Bible  into  Burmese  :   The  Ac- 
cepted Version. 

English  and  Burman  Dictionary.    Completed  by  Mr. 
Stevens. 

Grammatical  Notices  of  the  Burman  Language. 

A  View  of  the  Christian  Religion  in  Thrke  Parts. 
Historic,  Didactic,  and  Preceptive. 

Various  Tracts  and  Pamphlets. 


183 


GENERAL  INDEX 


PAGE 

American    Baptist  Missionary 

Union  38,  39,170 

Ameiican  Board  of  Commission- 
ers for  Foreign  Missions :  or- 
ganized 25, 175 

appoint  first  missionaries   26 

Amherst :  mission  at  started   104 

resting  place  of  Ann  H.  Judson  108 

Andover:  entered   21 

Ava :  seat  of  Burmese  government  70 

visited  by  Judson  74-83 

mission  started  at   89 

Judson  imprisoned  at   90 

Bailey,  Hon.  John   16 

Baptisms  131, 133 

Baptist:  Judson  becomes  a   29 

Baptists  in  America:  feeble  and 

scattered   31 

society  of,  for  propagating  the 
gospel  in  India  organized  for 

mission  work   37 

seeking  English  co-operation   37 

lukewaimness  of,  for  missions...  163 
Bennett,  Cephas,  Mr.  and  Mrs.: 

join  Judson  at  Moulmein   123 

take  charge  of  Rangoon  mission  124 
Board  of  Foreign  Missions  of  the 

Presbyterian  Church   176 

Boardman,  Geo.  Dana :  mentioned  101 
starts  a  mission  at  Moulmein...  109 
mission  of  among  the  Karens...  123 

death  of  at  Tavoy.   127 

Boardman,  Sarah  Hall:  enthusi- 
asm of,  for  missions   102 


Boardman,  Sarah  Hall:  marriage 

of  to  Judson   13:< 

character  of.   134 

death  of   146 

Bogue,  Dr.,  mentioned   24 

Braintree,  Mass   15 

Brahminism   48 

Buchanan,  Dr.  Claudius  :  sermon 

of.   22 

Buddhism :  the  religion  of  Burma  48 

history  of.   46 

characteristics  of.   49 

doctrine  of  transmigration  of 

souls  48,  50 

contrasted  with  Brahminism....  51 

Gautama  the  founder  of.   48 

theories  of.  54,  65,  56 

Burma:  mentioned  36,47 

despotic  government  of  40,  41 

description  of.  _  43-46 

animals  in   43 

inhabitants  of.   44 

description  of,  by  Major  Yule...  46 

production  of  food  in   45 

independent  feeling  among  peo- 
ple of.   45 

people  of,  readers   61 

commerce  of.   46 

no   manufactures    In,  worth 

mentioning   46 

division  of  country  in   47 

method  of  taxation  in   47 

punishment  of  prisoners  in   48 

relations  of,  to  Buddhism   48 

Burman  dictionary   172 

186 


186 


INDEX 


PAOE 

Carey,  William  30,  37 

Chittagong :  English  Baptists  at..  67 
Judson's  first  visit  to   68 

Chubbuck,  Emily :  "  Fanny  For- 
ester "   151 

early  life  and  character  of  ...151-155 
marries  Adoniram  Judson   156 

Colman:  companion  of  Judson...  71 

visits  Ava  74-83 

medical  skill  of   80 

death  of   84 

Congregational  Church :  joined  by 
Judson   21 

General  Association :  Congrega- 
tional Churches  of  Mass  24,  25 

"  Grammatical  Notices  of  the  Bur- 
man  Language"   66 

Gordon  Hall :  mentioned   23 

appointed  missionary   26 

Hamlin,  Captain  :  Scotch  sea-cap- 
tain   140 

Hasseltine,  Ann :   betrothed  to 

Judson   26 

birth,  parents,  character  of.   27 

married  to  Judson   27 

baptized   31 

health  of,  fails   65 

trip  of,  to  America™   86 

dies  at  Amherst   106 

Hough,  Rev.  Geo.  H. :  first  mis- 
sionary printer   66 

Hugli  River  31,  33 

India :  ruled  by  East  India  Co   32 

Isle  of  France  (Mauritius) :  Jud- 
son at  32,  34 

brief  sketch  of.   34 

Judson,  Adoniram :  birthplace  of.  9 

father  of.  9, 10,  27, 110 

mother  of.  9,  27, 141 

Oftrly  homes  of.  10, 15 


PAGE 

Judson,  Adoniram :  his  sister  Abi- 
gail 10, 141 

his  brother  Elnathan...ll,  27,28, 123 

early  impressions  of.   II 

precociousness  of  12-14 

fondness  of,  for  Literature  14, 114 

education  of  14, 15, 21 

a  school  teacher  16,  18 

illness  of  16,  66,  68 

dreams  of  16, 17, 18 

infidelity  of   18 

journeys  of,  18-21,  25,  29,  33,  35,  36 
68,  74-76,  85,  87,  101,  104,  105,  124 
140,  144, 159, 169 

his  love  of  adventure   19 

religious  convictions  of  20,  21 

conversion  of.   21 

consecration  of.  21,  23 

a  Congregationalist   21 

becoming  a  missionary   22 

imprisonment  of  25, 90-100 

in  England   26 

appointed  missionary   26 

married  to  Ann  Hasseltine   26 

becoming  a  Baptist   29 

30,31 

baptism  of   32 

at  Calcutta  31,  32,  85 

at  Serampore   31,  85,  139 

at  Isle  of  France.  34,  35 

trials  of.  36 

at  Rangoon,  37,  57-73,  83-88, 101-104 
124-127,  159-164 

influence  of  on  missions   38 

influence  of  on  the  Baptist  de- 
nomination  39 

his  diflaculties  59,  63 

his  methods  of  work  60,  61,  62 

his  confidence  in  God  61,  64 

translations  into  Burmese  by..67,  87 
108,  126, 135 

his  preaching,  character  of.. ..62,  63 
sayings  of,  64,  69,  90,  128, 136,  l.i7 
149,  163, 166,  170 


INDEX 


187 


PAGE 

JudsoD,  Adoniram:  children  of...  65 
97,  101,  108,  138,  139,  142 

U  student   GG 

"  Grammatical  Notices  of  the 

Burman  Language  "  by   66 

holds  first  public  worship  in 

Burma   71 

baptizes  first  Burman  convert 

opposition  met  by...  72,  80,  160 

at  Ava  76,  83,  87,  89, 105,  106 

his  interview  with  Emperor  of 

Burma  ~  78,  79 

firm  adherence  of  converts  to....  84 

active  temperameiit  of  87, 167 

ut  Oung-pen-la  iO-lOO 

his  hardy  constitution   96 

his  affectionate  disposition...l02, 115 
138, 168 

at  Amherst  105-110 

his  first  wife  dies   106 

at  Moulmein... 111-123,  130-139,  157 
164 

a  man  of  prayer   112 

self-sacrificing   113, 165 

modesty  of.   113 

a  brilliant  conversationalist   115 

a  sou  of  consolation  116,  128,  167 

at  Prorae  121,  125 

restless  spirit  of   131 

married  to  Sarah  Boardman..  ..  113 

his  second  wife  dies   146 

visit  of  to  America  147-157 

third  marriage  of.   156 

Burmese  dictionary  of.   161 

energy  of  164,  165 

death  of.   170 

posthumous  influence  of  172, 180 

Judson,  Elnathan  27, 28 

Judson,  Emily  Frances   168 

Judson,  Abby  Ann   138 

Karens:    first   mission  started 

among   123 

character  of.   131 


PAOB 

Ko  Thah-a :  first  native  pastor   121 

Loveless,  Mr.  and  Mrs.:  English 
missionaries   35 

Maiden,  Mass. :  Judson  tablet  at...  9 

Judson  bom  at   9 

Marshman   30,37 

Mills,  Samuel  J.,  Jr   23 

Missionary   Society :     none  in 

America   24 

Massachusetts,  founded   24 

London,  visited  by  Judson  „  25 

Monument,  Haystack   23 

Moulmein :  English  military  sta~ 

tion   lO'J 

mission  started  at>».   109,  117 

Moung  Nau:  first  conTert  bap- 
tized   71 

Native  converts   119 

Newell,  Mrs.  Harriet   34 

Newell,  Samuel   26 

Nott,  Samuel,  Jr. :  early  acqiaint- 

ance  of,  with  Judson  -  22 

appointed  missionary   26 

Otaheite   64 

Oung-pen-la :  Judson  imprisoned 

in  90-100 

description  of.  92-94 

methods  of  torture  at.   98 

Plymouth,  Mass  16, 18,  21 

Price,  Rev.  Jonathan,  M.  D. :  joins 

Judson   86 

visits  the  emperor  at  Ava   87 

imprisoned  at  Ava  and  at  Oung- 
pen-la   90-100 

Printer :  first  missionary,  in  India  66 
Prome :  Judson's  failure  to  plant 

Christianity  at   24 

Pulo  Penang,  or  Prince  of  Wales 
Island   Its 


188 


INDEX 


PAGE 


Rangoon   35 

Btrategic  position  of,  for  mis- 
sions 57,  68,  59 

Judson  starts  mission  in  

native  church  organized  at   120 

Rhode  Island  College   15 

Richards,  James   23 

Rice,  Luther :  associate  of  Judson  23 

baptized  „   32 

returns  to  America   34 

arouses  enthusiasm  in  America  38 
working  to  get  money  in  U.  S....  66 

Saugur   33 

Serampore   31 

Sharpe,  Rev.  Daniel   148 

St  Helena  146 


PAGE 

Tavoy:  mission  started  at   122 

theatrical  troupe  attached  to   19 

Wadesville :     mission  village 

among  the  Karens   132 

Wade,  Mr.  and  Mrs   86 

War  between  England  and  Burma  89 

cause  of.   89 

result  of.  103, 104 

Ward   30,37 

Wheelock :  companion  of  Judson  71 
untimely  end  of   73 

Yule,  Major :  description  of  Bur- 
ma by   44 


NOTABLE  BAPTISTS. 


A  series  of  short,  popular  Baptist  biograpliiog. 
12mo.,  192  pp.    Price,  90  cts. 


I.  Adoniram  Judson. 

By  his  son,  Edward  Judson,  D.  D. 

Published. 

11.  Andrew  Fuller. 

By  Kobert  S.  MacArthur,  D.  D. 

In"  preparation. 

III.  James  Manning. 

By  E.  Benj.  Andrews,  LL.  D. 

In  preparation. 

IV.  Richard  Fuller. 

By  J.  L.  M.  Curry,  LL.  D. 

In  preparation. 

V.  Francis  Wayland. 


Others  will  bo  provided  for  from  time  to  time. 


v; 


